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ABINGDON, Va. (WJHL) – A federal court has sentenced three individuals after they were convicted of embezzling over $650,000 in fraudulent unemployment claims from Virginia taxpayers during the COVID-19 crisis. This information comes from a press release by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ).
The individuals involved orchestrated a scheme using the personal data of inmates at Duffield Regional Jail, along with others who were not eligible for pandemic-related unemployment benefits.
- Jonathan Rickets, 45, Duffield, Va., was sentenced to 84 months and ordered to pay $669,124 in restitution.
- Christopher Woliver, 37, Big Stone Gap, Va., was sentenced to 24 months and ordered to pay $29,076 in restitution.
- Megan Caudill, 39, Swards Creek, Va., was sentenced to 30 days in prison and three years of supervised release, in addition to 12 months of house arrest. She was also ordered to pay $166,204 in restitution.
All three defendants admitted guilt to charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and making false statements tied to emergency benefit claims.
The DOJ identified Ricketts Advisory LLC, operated by Johnathan Ricketts and his wife, Farren Ricketts, as a company dedicated solely to submitting fraudulent unemployment claims amidst the pandemic.
The DOJ report states that while Jonathan Ricketts was serving time at Duffield Regional Jail, he gathered and mailed inmates’ personal information and signatures to Farren Ricketts for fraudulent purposes.
Farren Ricketts would then file the fraudulent unemployment claims, totaling at least 101 false claims.
Both Woliver and Caudill worked for the fraudulent company.
Caudill received $21,368 in pandemic unemployment benefits, in addition to recruiting others to file their claims through Ricketts Advisory LLC, where he gathered $166,204 in unwarranted payments, the DOJ reports.
Woliver reportedly received $3,270 in pandemic unemployment benefits, as well as an additional $25,806 in fraudulent claims filed by others she recruited.