The first Mainer accused of fraudulently obtaining a Paycheck Protection Program loan, intended to help businesses pay employees and other expenses during the early days of the pandemic, will plead guilty to bank fraud charges Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Bangor.
Nathan Reardon, 44, of Skowhegan and Plymouth pleaded not guilty in May 2021 to five counts of bank fraud, three counts of attempted wire fraud, two counts of making false statements to a bank and one count of perjury after being indicted by a federal grand jury.
He obtained a $60,000 PPP loan in 2020 by allegedly falsifying information about payroll for his business. According to court documents, Reardon spent the money on personal items including a men’s 14-carat yellow gold wedding band, clothing, shaving products, toys, an LED barber pole light and a pair of caiman skin cowboy boots, a court affidavit said. Caimans are a species related to alligators found in Central and South America.
In a plea agreement with the U.S. attorney’s offices, all charges but the bank fraud counts will be dismissed after Reardon is sentenced later this year, according to court documents filed Saturday. Reardon waived his right to appeal his sentence to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston if it is longer than a year and a day.
Reardon also is expected to be ordered to pay the government about $90,000 in restitution for the $60,000 that was approved and the $30,000 that was accidentally transferred to his bank account after a second loan of $60,000 was denied.
Jury selection in Reardon’s trial on the charges was set to be Tuesday. The two-week long trial was scheduled to begin July 11. Reardon had sought to have the trial continued until September but U.S. District Court Judge Lance Walker denied that motion on Thursday.
The judge previously denied motions to move the trial from Bangor to Portland and to release Reardon after his bail was revoked in April of this year. He remained Sunday at the Hancock County Jail.
The Bangor Daily News published a series of articles earlier this year about Reardon and his struggle with Bangor city officials that led the city to condemn a portion of the Bangor Mall.
The coverage also focused on Reardon’s business practices and the nature of his sprawling business empire that includes dozens of companies, a trail of debt to nearly 100 former employees, and $100,000 in fines for labor violations in addition to the federal fraud case.
The coverage highlighted Reardon’s track record as a property manager renting out apartments to tenants as well.
Reardon sued the BDN over its coverage in April, alleging defamation, and he sued another news outlet, News Center Maine, late last year. Those lawsuits are pending.
In addition to the federal charges, Reardon has been charged in Somerset County with Class B theft for allegedly refusing to pay $22,000 in bills for renovation work on a commercial property to plumbers, carpenters, electricians, construction workers and laborers.
The maximum penalty in that case is 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $20,000. He also could be ordered to pay restitution in that case.
