James Lomax, a 33-year-old resident of Hurricane, West Virginia, has admitted to fraudulently obtaining unemployment funds, including COVID-19 supplementary benefits. Lomax pleaded guilty to the charge of theft of public money, property, or records in Charleston, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.
Court documents reveal that Lomax initially applied for unemployment compensation in March 2020 after losing his job due to the pandemic. Although he resumed work by the end of April that year, he continued to claim benefits until mid-July, acquiring $13,312 in fraudulently obtained unemployment payments. These funds included supplementary money from the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation Program under the CARES Act.
Lomax certified his unemployment status on the WorkForce West Virginia website for 13 consecutive weeks, despite knowing he was ineligible. He used the money obtained during this period for personal expenses.
The scheduled sentencing for Lomax is on August 7, 2025. He could face a maximum of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Additionally, he is required to reimburse the $13,312.
Lomax's father, Gary Lomax, and another colleague, Christopher Grant, were also involved in similar fraud schemes. Both pleaded guilty previously and received sentences of five years of federal probation with home detention and were ordered to pay restitution for their involvement.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston acknowledged the efforts of several organizations in the investigation, including WorkForce West Virginia, NASA's Office of Inspector General, the Litigation Financial Analyst with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the West Virginia State Police.
The case received support from the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee's Fraud Task Force. This committee is responsible for overseeing the government's response to COVID-19, with a specific focus on detecting and preventing fraudulent activities related to pandemic spending.
Individuals with relevant information about fraud related to COVID-19 are urged to contact the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud.
