PPP fraud investigation by state watchdog finds $7.2 million in improper loans

More than four years after the outbreak of COVID-19, a state watchdog is continuing to investigate public employees ripping off millions of dollars from the federal Paycheck Protection Program intended for businesses that struggled during the pandemic. Since the coronavirus pandemic began here in early 2020, the Office of Executive Inspector General has found 277 cases of wrongdoing involving PPP loans, which were typically forgiven, meaning they didn’t have to be repaid. The investigators focused on loans of more than $20,000 and found about $7.2 million in improper ones, according...