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Rappahannock judge issues arrest warrant for man convicted of construction fraud

by | Jun 21, 2026

focus on hammer, group of files on judge table covered with dust - concept of pending old cases or work at judicial court.
(Courtesy/Adobe Stock)

A man the prosecution says has made a habit of taking money for construction work he never completes is now the subject of a Rappahannock County arrest warrant after vanishing following a 2023 fraud conviction.

Gregg Howell, 65, whose last known residence was in Bowling Green, Ky., was convicted in Rappahannock County Circuit Court of construction fraud in October 2023 after he was paid more than $13,000 by an Amissville man for a shed that was never built. He was sentenced to seven months of active jail time with an additional two years and five months suspended, and 18 months of probation.

Howell “hasn’t communicated” with probation officials and a letter sent to his last known Kentucky address was held at the post office and never delivered, Commonwealth’s Attorney Art Goff told Judge Dennis Hupp on Thursday. He said Howell’s “modus operandi” (mode of operating) was traveling around the southeastern United States committing construction fraud.

Goff asked Hupp to issue a capias — an arrest warrant that flags Howell in law enforcement databases nationwide — so that if he is pulled over or arrested in another jurisdiction, he would be returned to Virginia.

“He owes a tremendous amount of restitution,” Goff said.

Judge Hupp agreed. If Howell is found, he is to be held without bond and extradited to Virginia.

Howell’s former attorney could not be reached for comment.

Author

  • Ireland Hayes

    Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner.
    Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.
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By Ireland Hayes

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Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.