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

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Gary Lomax, 62, of Hurricane, pleaded guilty today to theft of public money, property or records. Lomas admitted that he fraudulently obtained approximately $8,760 in unemployment benefits, including COVID-19 supplementary funds, and a $20,832 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).

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 associate at a Charleston auto dealership when the COVID-19 pandemic began. Lomax legitimately received unemployment benefits until the week ending April 18, 2020, when he returned to work.

Lomax admitted that from at least April 25, 2020 through at least June 27, 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 $8,760 in unemployment benefits, including supplementary funds provided by the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation Program (FPUC) of the 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 10 consecutive weeks that he was entitled to unemployment benefits. Lomax submitted the false certification answers while using his personal electronic device in St. Albans.

On March 29, 2021, Lomax applied for a PPP loan by falsely representing that he had earned $369,730 during the 2020 tax year as an independent contractor. PPP loans were available to qualifying independent contractors and self-employed individuals adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to replace their normal income and for certain other expenses. Lomax admitted that he had no independent contractor income to report for that tax year. Lomax further admitted that he made this false representation in order to receive $20,832, the maximum loan amount available to independent contractors.

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

Lomax is scheduled to be sentenced on November 13, 2024, 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 $29,592 in restitution.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the WorkForce West Virginia Integrity Section, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Litigation Financial Analyst with the U.S. Attorney's Office and the West Virginia State Police - Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI).

Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Andrew J. Tessman is prosecuting the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department's response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice's National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) 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. 2:24-cr-114.

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