HENDERSON, Ky (WEHT) – A Robards man was sentenced to three years and six months in federal prison on Thursday after pleading guilty to two counts of wire fraud, one count of filing a false federal income tax return and two counts of failure to file a federal income tax return.
According to court documents, James Cox, 45, used his position as the Parts Manager for a multi-state business to fraudulently order parts and products that the business did not need using funds belonging to the business between 2018 and 2020. Authorities say Cox then stole the items, including HVAC units and LED display kits, and sold them online without authorization.
Officials say Cox sold approximately 400 stolen items online, resulting in a total loss of $431,557.61 to his employer. Court documents say Cox also did not report the income from the sales on his 2018 tax return, and he failed to file returns for 2019 and 2020. The total tax loss to the U.S. government amounted to $106,690.
In addition to his sentence, a U.S. District Court Judge ordered that Cox be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for three years following his release from federal prison, and that he pay $82,482.11 to the employer, $349,075.50 to the employer’s insurance company and $106,690 to the IRS.
