State caught more than 3,000 fraudulent jobless claims, stopped payments

About 3,000 fraudulent claims doesn’t seem like much when it’s less than three-tenths of a percent of all the unemployment applications that have been filed in Virginia.

The Virginia Employment Commission had handled 1,008,797 initial unemployment claims between mid-March and July 18, an unheard of number that would have normally taken years to amass, not months.

But 3,000 fraudulent claims also means there could be 3,000 people whose information is being stolen by someone else to claim unemployment benefits. If you’ve received a letter from the VEC saying you submitted a claim, and you didn’t — or are still very much employed — you can let the VEC know online at vec.virginia.gov or directly at https://employer.vec.virginia.gov/eForms/ff04#.

VEC spokeswoman Joyce Fogg said the agency had stopped $50 million in fraudulent benefits payments. As of July 18, it had paid out $6.9 billion.