Robert Jones, Defrauding Elderly Citizens and Local Bank, West Virginia 2022

In a shocking case of elder abuse, 52-year-old Robert Jones of Hurricane, West Virginia, was convicted of defrauding two elderly residents and a local bank out of thousands of dollars.

According to court documents, Jones worked on a property in Clendenin owned by an elderly woman, who hired him to perform mold remediation and other handyman services. However, instead of doing the work as promised, Jones obtained blank checks belonging to the elderly homeowner and forged the signature of the woman who hired him.

He then wrote checks to himself in the amounts of $7,000 and $8,500, which he deposited at the Hurricane branch of a local bank where he had an account. Neither of the elderly women was aware that Jones had used their personal identifiers to obtain money from the bank.

As part of his plea agreement, Jones has agreed to pay $25,000 in restitution to the bank. He faces four years in prison when he is sentenced on April 25, 2022. Jones is also facing pending state charges in Jackson, Lewis, Lincoln, and Putnam Counties related to additional fraud schemes.

United States Attorney Will Thompson praised the West Virginia State Police and the West Virginia Attorney General’s Office-Consumer Protection Division for securing the conviction. Attorney General Patrick Morrisey added that contractors who defraud consumers must be held accountable and that his office will vigorously pursue con artists who try to operate outside of the law.

Robert Jones, 52, of Hurricane, pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated identity theft in the Southern District of West Virginia. He is currently awaiting sentencing and faces four years in prison.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kristin F. Scott.

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