PEORIA, Ill. – A rural Knox County resident has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges accusing him of defrauding the Payroll Protection Program set up at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Court records indicate Michael Patch, 64, of Saint Augustine pleaded guilty last week in Peoria to one count of Bank Fraud, and two counts of Wire Fraud. He was originally charged with multiple counts of each when he was arrested about a year ago.
Patch allegedly provided falsified loan documents to the Bank of Farmington in April of 2020, and then in both April and August sending those documents to the Small Business Administration. He owned the now-former Vernon Street Grill in Farmington at the time, and allegedly used false and inflated receipts and payroll data.
He’s scheduled to be sentenced February 9th and could face decades in prison.
Read the original indictment by CLICKING HERE (PDF document).
