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Wise County Man Pleads Guilty to Unemployment Fraud Scheme — Western District of Virginia (April 8, 2021)

Summary

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Virginia dated Thursday, April 8, 2021, announcing a guilty plea. It states that Travis Kilgore, 34, waived indictment and pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Abingdon to a two-count Information charging one count of conspiracy to defraud the government and one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. According to the release, Kilgore admitted a scheme beginning in May 2020 to defraud the United States and the Virginia Employment Commission through fraudulent claims for pandemic unemployment benefits. It states that Kilgore filed claims for approximately 21 other individuals, causing at least $182,474 in false claims to be paid. Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar and Jonathan Mellone of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General announced the plea.

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“Wise County Man Pleads Guilty to Unemployment Fraud Scheme — Western District of Virginia (April 8, 2021).” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2021-04-09-wise-county-man-pleads-guilty-to-unemployment-fraud-scheme-56318ca861/, SHA-256 a523d0916c66944b6d5f071396cd669879deaa19b1b3312aa85993615c9320e5.

Full text

                                       Department of Justice
                                         U.S. Attorney’s Office
                                      Western District of Virginia


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                           Thursday, April 8, 2021

   Wise County Man Pleads Guilty to Unemployment Fraud
                         Scheme
ABINGDON, Va.- Travis Kilgore, a Wise, Va., man who conspired to file for fraudulent pandemic
unemployment benefits, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Abingdon to charges he
conspired with others to commit mail fraud and defraud the government of more than $182,474,
Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar and Jonathan Mellone, Acting Special Agent-in-
Charge, Philadelphia Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General announced
today.

Kilgore, 34, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today to a two-count Information
charging him with one count of conspiracy to defraud the government and one count of conspiracy to
commit mail fraud.

“During a worldwide pandemic, Kilgore and his co-conspirators defrauded the government and stole
funds targeted to help the most vulnerable in society, who had lost their jobs,” said Acting U.S.
Attorney Bubar today. “I am grateful for the Department of Labor and our state partners, whose hard
work brought Kilgore to justice, and demonstrate the importance of the integrity of these vital
programs.”

“Pandemic unemployment insurance benefits provide needed assistance to qualified individuals who
suffered a loss of employment due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The defendant and his co-
conspirators took advantage of this program by lying about their eligibility when filing for Pandemic
unemployment insurance for themselves and others. The Office of Inspector General will continue to
work diligently with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Virginia Employment Commission, and our law
enforcement partners to protect the integrity of the unemployment insurance system from those who
choose to exploit the program” said Jonathan Mellone, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Philadelphia
Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.

Kilgore admitted today that he, and others, developed a scheme beginning in May 2020 to defraud
the United States and the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC) through the filing of fraudulent
claims for pandemic unemployment benefits.

According to court documents, Kilgore and others filed claims for pandemic unemployment benefits
through the VEC website. The scheme involved submitting claims for various individuals, including
Kilgore and others, who were not eligible to receive pandemic unemployment benefits. Kilgore lied
on the filings as part of the scheme to appear eligible for benefits. Because pandemic unemployment
benefits were paid weekly, Kilgore reverified and re-certified the false statements on numerous
occasions throughout the scheme.

In all, Kilgore filed claims for approximately 21 other individuals, causing at least $182,474 in false
claims to be have been paid.

The investigation of the case was conducted by the Department of Labor-Office of the Inspector
General and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Norton Police Department,
and the Russell County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Daniel J. Murphy is
prosecuting the case for the United States.
Component(s):
USAO - Virginia, Western

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