Putnam County Man Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining Unemployment and COVID-19 Benefits

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – James Lomax, 33, of Hurricane, pleaded guilty today to theft of public money, property or records. Lomax admitted that he fraudulently obtained $13,312 in unemployment benefits, including COVID-19 supplementary funds.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on or about March 24, 2020, Lomax applied for unemployment compensation after he was laid off as a sales manager at a St. Albans auto dealership when the COVID-19 pandemic began. Lomax legitimately received unemployment benefits until the week ending April 25, 2020, when he returned to work.

Lomax admitted that from at least April 25, 2020 through at least July 18, 2020, he continued to apply for unemployment benefits that he knew he was not entitled to because he had returned to work. Lomax fraudulently obtained approximately $13,312 in unemployment benefits, including supplementary funds provided by the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation Program (FPUC) of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).

WorkForce West Virginia administers the unemployment compensation program for the State of West Virginia. Lomax admitted that as part of his scheme, he falsely certified on the WorkForce West Virginia website for 13 consecutive weeks that he was entitled to unemployment benefits. Lomax submitted the false certification answers while using his personal electronic device in St. Albans.

Lomax admitted that he used the fraudulently obtained unemployment benefits to make purchases and pay his bills.

Lomax is scheduled to be sentenced on August 7, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Lomax also owes $13,312 in restitution.

Two of Lomax’s co-workers – his father Gary Lomax, 63, of Hurricane, and Christopher Grant, 41, of Buckhannon – previously pleaded guilty to similar pandemic-related unemployment compensation fraud schemes. Gary Lomax was sentenced on November 19, 2024, to five years of federal probation, including four months on home detention, and ordered to pay $29,592 in restitution for theft of public money, property or records. Grant was sentenced on November 25, 2024, to five years of federal probation, including four months on home detention, and ordered to pay $35,168 in restitution for conspiracy to steal public money, property or records.

Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the WorkForce West Virginia Integrity Section, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Inspector General (NASA OIG), the Litigation Financial Analyst with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the West Virginia State Police – Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI).

NASA OIG is an active member of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) Fraud Task Force. The PRAC was established to promote transparency and facilitate coordinated oversight of the federal government’s COVID-19 pandemic response. The PRAC’s 20 member Inspectors General identify major risks that cross program and agency boundaries to detect fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement in the more than $5 trillion in COVID-19 spending, including spending via the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program. This case was also supported by the PRAC’s Pandemic Analytics Center of Excellence, which applies the latest advances in analytic and forensic technologies to help OIGs and law enforcement pursue data-driven pandemic relief fraud investigations.

United States District Judge Irene C. Berger presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys J. Parker Bazzle II and Andrew J. Tessman are prosecuting the case.

Individuals with information about allegations of fraud involving COVID-19 are encouraged to report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721, or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:25-cr-57.

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