LEWISBURG —A financial services company coming after Gov. Jim Justice personally for $2.79 million is asking the Greenbrier County sheriff to seize personal property and for Justice assets in a dozen banks to be checked.
Meanwhile, a legal ad says the sheriff of Logan County has been authorized to sell shares of two Justice-owned companies to settle yet another debt in the court system.
This has been quite a week for Governor Justice and his family’s vast holdings.
Court cases, including some from afar, keep resulting in local law enforcement officers being asked to assess what personal property is available from Gov. Jim Justice, said to be the state’s richest man — and seize it.
In Greenbrier County, the multi-million dollar collection attempt comes after Justice signed off on a court agreement to pay down almost $4 million in debt to Siemens Financial Services.
The debt originally belonged to one of Justice’s companies, Southern Coal. But Justice had earlier personally guaranteed the debt would be paid down.
He didn’t do so fast enough to satisfy the company. It’s now trying to force the collection of what’s left.
The legally-binding agreement took place in Superior Court of New Jersey, Middlesex County. A lawyer for Siemens Financial Services filed a notice of foreign judgment in Greenbrier County.
On May 28, the sheriff of Greenbrier County received a writ of execution: “we command you that the goods and chattels of the defendant, James C. Justice II, in your bailiwick, you cause to be made the total sum of $2,790,156.81, plus continuing per (diem or annum) interest rate of 3.5 percent.”
A request for execution filed the same day with the circuit clerk in Greenbrier County had this direction: “Please direct the sheriff to levy any and all personal property of the defendant at the following address.”
The name and address belonged to James C. Justice, the governor of West Virginia, in a Lewisburg neighborhood.
That same day, a dozen banks were listed in a suggestion of personal property, indicating they might hold some of Justice’s personal property being sought.
Each bank was sent notification that the writ of execution would apply to any accounts up to the amount being sought.
The banks included Premier Bank, Huntington Bank, First National, First Citizens, First Bank of Charleston, City National, Chase Bank, BB&T, Bank of Monroe, Wesbanco, Summit Community Bank and United Bank.
MetroNews obtained the documents through a visit to the Greenbrier Circuit Clerk.
