DENVER — The former owner of a downtown hotel and nightclub is accused of lying on applications to obtain nearly half-a-million dollars worth of taxpayer dollars in pandemic relief funds.
Amin Suliaman was arrested by federal authorities in Miami this month after a grand jury in Colorado indicted him on May 7. Suliaman moved from Denver to Texas after the Nativ Hotel and nightclub went bankrupt and went out of business.
According to the indictment, Suliaman inflated the number of employees who worked for his businesses and also requested money for a business that wasn’t operating anymore.
The total amount Suliaman is accused of stealing is $449,800.
The indictment says Suliaman used some of the money for rent, personal travel, retail purchases and “large cash withdrawals inconsistent with legitimate business expenses.” The document also says some of the money was distributed to other nightclubs he operated in Texas.
Suliaman’s defense attorney, Harvey Steinberg, told 9NEWS in a statement “at the end of the day we believe we will be vindicated.”
A news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Colorado suggested Suliaman will be expected to appear before a Colorado federal judge at a later date.
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