EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — Promises of new signage and permits have left two El Paso-area business owners saying they paid thousands of dollars up front and got unfinished work and little communication in return — and now the sign company’s owner has been arrested, according to jail records.
Eric Hernandez, who’s family has owned JH Collision Center for nearly 30 years, said his family’s business hired Power Punch Signs after city construction on Artcraft Road required them to move their sign.
JH Collision Center sign. (Credit: KFOX14/CBS4)
Hernandez said the company’s owner, Abel Velasquez, provided a $25,000 quote in April 2025 with a July 12th deadline.
According to Hernandez, a contract was signed stating that if the work was not finished by that date, a full refund would be issued.
JH Collision Center then paid a $12,000 retainer.
Check made out to Power Punch Signs for roughly $12,000 from JH Collision Center. (Credit: KFOX14/CBS4)
However, the July 12 deadline passed without the sign being moved, the family says.
They claim communication ceased shortly thereafter.
“I mean it feels very bad And then us giving having to give up the 12,000 dollars upfront taking his word and him not showing up and stop answering our phone calls,” Hernandez said.
On July 14, 2025, the family filed a police report regarding the incident.
They also allege that after the report was filed, the sign company left a one-star review on JH Collision’s Google business page, criticizing the shop despite, according to the family, never having done business with them beyond the sign contract.
“It felt very bad,” the representative said. “We’re a local family-owned business. Losing $12,000 was a big hit on our accounts.”
Hernandez also added, “I do feel like we were scammed it…” and “He never he was a man of his word.”
Hernandez adds his family ultimately hired another company to complete the sign relocation for approximately the same total cost of $25,000.
They report that the second company secured permits, provided regular updates, and completed the project as promised.
The experience, Hernandez says, has made them more cautious when hiring vendors.
“We did look at their page. They had five-star Google reviews, so it seemed legit,” Hernandez said. “Now we tell other local businesses to do their research and be careful. Don’t just rely on online reviews.”
Valerie Villarreal, owner of Blue Lab Luxury Studios, said she also hired Power Punch Signs in April 2025 for a new sign that Velasquez stated would be installed within a month, meaning the sign should have been completed in May.
Blue Lab Luxury Studios sign. (Credit: KFOX14/CBS4)
The original contract for the project was $7,500. Villarreal says she paid $6,000 upfront and was withholding the remaining $1,500 until the job was complete.
“They were really pushy for payments and there was a lot of delays,” she said. “When I asked for a refund, they all of a sudden were able to get my sign.”
Villarreal says the sign was ultimately installed in July 2025.
However, she later discovered that the required city permits had not been obtained, something she says was clearly included in their agreement.
“All of the paperwork stated that there was going to be permits done,” she said. “From the very beginning, they told me they needed the deposit to start pulling permits. When things were delayed, they said it was because permits were pending with the city.”
Instead, Villarreal says she was cited by the City of El Paso for not having proper permits for the sign.
“So my experience with Power Punch Signs was pretty horrible from the very beginning,” Villarreal said.
Villarreal says she hired another company to correct the issue.
That company removed the sign, inspected it, secured the necessary permits, and reinstalled it properly.
In total, she estimates she has spent about $7,600 so far — not including potential court fees related to the citation.
She says she is still required to return to court and does not yet know whether additional fines will be imposed.
KFOX14/CBS4 looked into public records which show Velasquez and his business are currently facing two active civil lawsuits.
Lawsuits filed against Power Punch Signs and Abel Velasquez. (Credit: KFOX14/CBS4)
The first lawsuit, filed Aug. 28, 2025, by Iwaloye Properties, LLC and Canaan Medical Complex II, names Angel Montelongo, individually and doing business as Power Punch Signs & Printing.
According to court documents, the agreement was established around May 30, 2025, for the construction and installation of a commercial pylon sign for Canaan Medical Complex II in El Paso.
Documents state, the total contract price was $30,000 and included obtaining a city permit, manufacturing the sign and completing installation.
An invoice attached to the filing shows a $30,000 project total, with an $18,000 deposit due May 30, 2024, and a remaining $12,000 balance due later that summer.
Iwaloye Properties, LLC and Canaan Medical Complex II claim Power Punch Signs took their money without doing the job and misled them by saying he was qualified and ready to complete the work when, they allege, he wasn’t.
You can read the full lawsuit below:
In a second lawsuit filed October 28, 2025, Mark Murray, CEO of A1 VA Ratings LLC, filed suit seeking up to $1 million in damages against Abel Velasquez and Power Punch Signs LLC.
The petition claims Velasquez and his business failed to construct a commercial billboard as agreed and engaged in a months-long pattern of false representations about the project’s status.
Court documents allege the total contract price was $65,720, and Murray states the company paid $38,416.63 upfront the same day the agreement was executed.
The billboard was expected to be completed by March 2025.
You can read the full lawsuit below:
Both Hernandez and Villarreal said they spoke with KFOX14/CBS4 to warn others.
“So I really encourage people to do their research, find different outlets, find other businesses, maybe somebody that might be in the same field as you and just ask them like, Hey, did you do this?” Villarreal said.
Hernandez added: “Sometimes don’t believe all the five-star Google reviews that you do see because we fell for it with them.”
According to jail records, Velasquez was arrested March 7 by the Texas Department of Public Safety on a charge of deceptive business practices.
KFOX14/CBS4 reached out to Velasquez, however he declined to comment.
People who believe they have been affected or experienced similar experiences are encouraged to contact their local law enforcement agency.
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