Will Smith identity thief sent back to prison

PITTSBURGH (AP) – A man who stole Will Smith’s identity to run up credit-card debts is going back to prison for two years for violating probation, a judge has ruled.

Judge Alan N. Bloch concluded Tuesday that Carlos Lomax, 45, formerly of Duquesne, was “not amenable” to probation, according to defense lawyer Mark Lancaster.

Lomax failed to rehabilitate himself and make restitution to his victims while on supervised release, U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan said.

He was sentenced to 37 months in prison – later reduced to 30 months – after pleading guilty to opening 14 bogus credit accounts at Pittsburgh-area stores using the identity of Willard C. Smith, the legal name of the rapper-turned-actor. Lomax was released from a halfway house in June.

Lomax has an earlier identity-theft conviction involving former Atlanta Hawks basketball player Steve Smith, now a TV commentator for the team.

Lomax was on probation after serving time for that crime – he ran up $81,000 on an American Express card in the basketball player’s name – when he was arrested in the Will Smith case.

A federal judge had ordered Lomax to repay American Express, plus another $190,000 to other companies whose credit he fraudulently obtained. That money has gone unpaid, Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret Picking said.

Lomax obtained court permission to move to Atlanta in August, but federal probation officials there refused to supervise him, Lancaster said.

When Lomax did not return to western Pennsylvania this fall, federal probation officials in Pittsburgh obtained an arrest warrant for him.

Lancaster argued Tuesday that Lomax was working in Atlanta and planned to repay more than $64,000 he owes to credit-card companies and other victims.

Lomax charged nearly $33,000 on accounts he opened in Will Smith’s name.

Bloch ordered Lomax to pay about $64,000, a sum that includes purchases Lomax made using Smith’s name and that of a retired, unidentified pro football player.

Smith appeared in TV’s “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” and in the films “Independence Day,” the “Men in Black” movies and “Ali.”

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Lackawanna County sheriff makes Mira Sorvino honorary deputy

SCRANTON, Pa. (AP) – Mira Sorvino is a second-generation honorary deputy sheriff.

Her father, actor Paul Sorvino, is a longtime friend of Lackawanna County Sheriff John Szymanski, who had sworn in the elder Sorvino as an honorary deputy years ago.

“I’ve got a picture of me, as a 14-year-old, when he was sworn in,” the 38-year-old Oscar-winning actress said.

On Tuesday, Szymanski administered the oath to Sorvino, who was there with her husband, Chris Backus; their 1-year-old daughter, Mattea Angel; and other family members.

Sorvino, who won the best supporting actress Oscar for her role in Woody Allen’s 1995 film, “Mighty Aphrodite,” was asked whether the Oscar or a deputy’s badge is a greater honor.

“That’s a hard one,” she said, smiling. “I’m not going to comment on that.”

Paul Sorvino, 66, starred in 1982’s “That Championship Season.” Scenes for the film were shot in Scranton. His screen credits also include roles in “Goodfellas” and “The Cooler.”