York County home builder took money for house he didn’t finish. He got 20 years
A judge sentenced a South Carolina home builder convicted of not finishing a home after receiving $150,000 from a buyer to 20 years in prison.
A jury convicted Christian Joseph Novellino, 51, of breach of trust with fraudulent intent and obtaining property under false pretenses at the end of a three-day trial in York County criminal court. Visiting Judge Keith Kelly sentenced him.
Novellino used the money paid by the victim to pay another person he owed money to, said 16th Circuit Senior Assistant Solicitor Matthew Hogge after the trial.
“It was a robbing Peter to pay Paul scheme,” Hogge said.
Hogge and 16th Circuit Solicitor Kevin Brackett prosecuted Novellino.
Efforts to reach his lawyer after the trial were unsuccessful.
Novellino still faces charges
Novellino was arrested in 2023 on 20 charges that alleged more than $2.4 million in fraud from houses he took money for but did not finish.
Novellino also has 2012 convictions for another building crime.
The trial this week was concerning only one of those victims. He still faces charges in connection with the other people. Brackett served Novellino notice after the trial that prosecutors could seek life in prison if Novellino is convicted of another similar case.
Novellino had been in jail since his 2023 arrest and receives 703 days credit toward his sentence.
This story was originally published November 5, 2025 at 5:07 PM.
