Three individuals were sentenced in U.S. District Court in Abingdon, Virginia, for their involvement in a scheme that used the personal information of inmates at Duffield Regional Jail and other ineligible individuals to file false unemployment benefit claims during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Jonathan Ricketts, 45, from Duffield, received an 84-month federal prison sentence after pleading guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and making false statements related to emergency benefits. He was ordered to pay $669,124 in restitution along with Farren Ricketts.
Christopher Woliver, 37, of Big Stone Gap, was sentenced to 24 months in prison and must pay $29,076 in restitution jointly with Farren and Jonathan Ricketts. Megan Caudill, 39, of Swords Creek, was sentenced to 30 days in prison followed by three years of supervised release—including one year on home confinement—and ordered to pay $166,204 in restitution with Farren and Jonathan Ricketts.
Acting United States Attorney Robert N. Tracci commented on the outcome: “I applaud our partners at the IRS, Department of Labor, and the Russell County Sheriff’s Office for their outstanding work on this case. Fraudsters who line their pockets at the expense of taxpayers will face accountability for their crimes.”
The fraud occurred as part of abuse against the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program (PUA), which was created during the Covid-19 pandemic to provide benefits for those not eligible under normal circumstances or who had exhausted regular unemployment insurance. The program required claimants to certify job loss or reduced hours due to Covid-19 and file weekly claims. Between April 2020 and March 2021, Virginia lost $1.1 billion through fraudulent claims related to PUA.
According to court documents, Jonathan Ricketts and his wife operated Ricketts Advisory LLC—a company set up primarily for filing fraudulent unemployment claims—employing up to seven people during the pandemic. While incarcerated at Duffield Regional Jail, Jonathan collected inmates’ personal information and signatures before mailing them to Farren Ricketts for use in fraudulent filings. In total, Ricketts Advisory submitted at least 101 false claims.
Megan Caudill worked as an employee at Ricketts Advisory; she personally received $21,368 through fraudulent means while also helping eleven others secure improper payments totaling $166,204.
Christopher Woliver also worked at Ricketts Advisory and obtained about $3,270 himself through illegitimate pandemic benefits but additionally recruited others whose collective false claims amounted to another $25,806.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General (DOL OIG), Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Russell County Sheriff’s Office, and Norton Police Department from Wise County.
Robert N. Tracci announced these sentences alongside Kareem Carter (Special Agent in Charge at IRS-CI) and Anthony P. D’Esposito (Inspector General at DOL OIG). Assistant United States Attorney Danielle Stone prosecuted the case.
This case formed part of a broader effort by the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Task Force—which coordinates oversight among twenty Inspectors General—to address fraud risks across programs involving over $5 trillion allocated during COVID-19 relief efforts.
