A 48-year-old Hagerstown man has been charged with falsely representing himself as an architect in designing a commercial building renovation in Hagerstown, the state Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation announced Thursday.

Anthony Robert Alongi was charged with felony theft and practicing architecture without a license, the labor department said. Alongi is accused of collecting close to $2,000 from a property owner, who hired him without knowing he wasn't licensed. Alongi had worked as an estimator for a construction company that the property owner contacted about doing the renovations but has never been licensed as an architect in Maryland, regulators said.

He could face up to 12 years in prison if convicted of all charges.

- Lorraine Mirabella