Steven Hull, Mail Fraud, West Virginia 2023

Steven Hull, 54, of Jane Lew, West Virginia, has admitted to a six-year scheme of highway robbery—on paper. The former engineering technician with the West Virginia Division of Highways pleaded guilty today to mail fraud after submitting phony hotel invoices and inflated expense reports, stealing $70,653.14 from state coffers.

Hull, who often traveled overnight for work, exploited the state’s reimbursement system from January 2011 to January 2017. He falsely claimed he stayed at hotels like Holiday Inn for extended periods—sometimes a full week—when in reality, he rented a cheap room on a monthly basis. The lie was systematic, detailed, and coldly calculated to bleed taxpayer funds.

From June 2014 onward, Hull didn’t just inflate—he fabricated. No receipts. No actual stays. Just paper trails he built from scratch, complete with fake taxes, rewards codes, and line-item details designed to pass scrutiny. The state, trusting the process, paid up. He spent just $18,144 on his actual lodging between June 2014 and December 2016—pocketing the rest.

“This scheme was literally highway robbery,” said U.S. Attorney Mike Stuart, whose office prosecuted the case. “Stealing from West Virginia taxpayers is a crime you won’t get away with.” Stuart, who commended the West Virginia Legislature Commission on Special Investigations for uncovering the fraud, stressed that public corruption will be met with relentless prosecution.

Now facing up to 20 years in federal prison, Hull will be sentenced on May 15, 2018, before U.S. District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. As part of his plea agreement, he has agreed to pay at least $52,509.14 in restitution—money that may never make up for the betrayal of public trust.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Meredith George Thomas. It stands as a stark reminder: even the smallest fraud, when repeated over years, becomes a crime that hits every taxpayer in the wallet. And in West Virginia, the feds are watching.