PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Federal prosecutors say a convicted bank robber from Rhode Island fraudulently obtained $600,000 in forgivable federal business loans and spent $30,000 in Las Vegas before being caught.
Michael Moller was held without bail pending trial at an appearance Tuesday in federal court.
Prosecutors say the 41-year-old Middletown man in April filed for $4.7 million in loans through the Paycheck Protection Program to pay employees at businesses he said were based in Fall River, Massachusetts.
There was no evidence those businesses existed.
The program's funds are intended for businesses struggling because of the coronavirus pandemic. Messages seeking comment were left with Moller's attorney.
