This is how jerks like Trump and Musk operate. They hire locals to do the work, knowing that they hold all the leverage. Then they withhold payment, usually asserting that something was wrong with the work. Then they litigate. Litigation is costly, and it’s easy to spend millions of dollars fighting legal battles, so the little guy is bullied into settling for a fraction of what was owed, because a full-on legal battle would likely wipe him out.