Irving Bathroom Contractor Arrested After Threatening Homeowner and Her Father With Grinder and Hammer
IRVING, Texas — A dispute over payment for a bathroom remodeling project at a North Irving home ended with a contractor behind bars after police say he threatened a woman and her father with a tile-cutting grinder and a hammer.
Esgar Rodriguez Mercado, 32, of Heath, Texas, was arrested October 29, 2026, and charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon following the confrontation at a residence in the 2500 block of Corbeau Drive, in the Lakeside Landing neighborhood near West Walnut Hill Lane.
According to an Irving Police Department arrest affidavit, the dispute began when the homeowner refused to pay the contractor until he completed the remodeling work.
Contractor Allegedly Threatened to "Break" Homeowner During Payment Dispute
At approximately 10:49 a.m., Irving police responded to a report of a civil dispute in progress at the residence.
The homeowner told officers she had hired Rodriguez Mercado to remodel an upstairs bathroom. An argument broke out when the two disagreed over payment for the unfinished work.
According to the affidavit, the woman told Rodriguez Mercado she would not pay him until the job was completed.
The contractor allegedly grabbed a handheld grinder used for cutting tile and threatened to smash the shower glass and bathroom mirror.
He then threatened to "break her," according to the homeowner's account.
The two were standing just a few feet apart when the threat occurred.
The woman began retreating from the bathroom as the confrontation escalated.
Homeowner's Father Threatened With Hammer, Police Say
The homeowner's father, who also lives at the residence, heard the argument and went to investigate.
When he confronted the contractor, Rodriguez Mercado was holding a hammer, according to the police report.
The father told investigators that Rodriguez Mercado threatened to "break" him and "beat you up" while raising the hammer and making threatening motions toward him.
The two men were standing within a few feet of each other.
The homeowner and another witness both reported hearing the contractor threaten her father with bodily harm.
The woman also told police she saw her father run out of the bathroom immediately after the threat.
Investigators determined that the threats against both victims, combined with the contractor's use of tools capable of causing serious injury, supported charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Rodriguez Mercado was arrested on two felony counts.
The victim's names were not included to protect their privacy.
Contractor Also Had Six Outstanding Warrants
During the arrest, police discovered that Rodriguez Mercado had six outstanding misdemeanor warrants from two other Dallas-area police departments.
Four warrants were issued by the Mesquite Police Department, while the remaining two were from the Balch Springs Police Department.
Rodriguez Mercado had also been arrested in March 2025 on two Class C misdemeanor assault charges.
According to information on its Facebook page, Rodriguez Mercado works for E.R. Quality Tile, a Dallas-based business that advertises 10 years of experience installing tile showers and flooring.
