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

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Scott Christie, 38, of Petrolia, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty today to theft of public money, property or records. Christie fraudulently obtained $34,801 or more in unemployment benefits, including COVID-19 supplementary funds, while a resident of Leon, West Virginia.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between February 29, 2020, and August 22, 2020, and between February 27, 2021, and August 14, 2021, Christie fraudulently applied for unemployment benefits from WorkForce West Virginia, which administers the unemployment compensation program for the State of West Virginia. Christie submitted a total of 50 weekly certifications to WorkForce West Virginia that failed to disclose his employment during those time periods. As a result of his fraudulent scheme, Christie received 52 unemployment benefits payments from WorkForce West Virginia totaling $34,801 or more that he was not entitled to receive.

The unemployment benefits fraudulently obtained by Christie included supplementary funds provided by the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation Program (FPUC) of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. As part of his fraudulent scheme, Christie falsely stated in the weekly certifications he submitted that he was unemployed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Christie is scheduled to be sentenced on January 13, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,00 fine. Christie also owes up to $34,801 in restitution.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the West Virginia State Police – Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI).

United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney J. Parker Bazzle II 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. 3:24-cr-107.

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