BUFFALO — The former owner of the Rapids Theatre will spend 14 months in prison after pleading guilty to defrauding the federal government out of more than $1.8 million in Covid relief program funds.
John L. Hutchins, 72, of Lewiston, was sentenced by Judge Meredith A. Vacca on Wednesday. In March 2025, Hutchins pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Buffalo.
His codefendant in the case, Roberto Soliman, 45, of Niagara Falls, who pleaded guilty to committing wire fraud and bank fraud in August, was also sentenced to 20 months in prison by Vacca on Wednesday.
Both Hutchins and Soliman were ordered to pay full restitution to the Small Business Administration and the victim banks.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul E. Bonanno and Douglas A. C. Penrose, who handled the case, stated that between March 2020 and March 2024, Hutchins and Soliman conspired with others to file fraudulent loan applications to obtain money through Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL), the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), and the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG). The loans available for these programs were designed to provide emergency financial assistance pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES Act). Hutchins and Soliman applied for loans under the following companies, which were owned by Hutchins:
• Rapids Theatre Niagara Falls, USA, Inc.
• 1711 Main, LLC
• Bear Creek Entertainment, LLC
• Hutch Enterprises, LLC
• The Hutchins Agency, LLC
• CWE Entertainment, Corp. (owned by defendant Soliman)
Between March and August 2020, Hutchins and Soliman received Economic Injury Disaster Loans totaling $779,500.00, SVOG loans totaling $989,905.05 and PPP loans totaling $115,978. In support of each of the loans, Hutchins and Soliman submitted false revenue and expense figures for the businesses on the loan applications.
“These defendants conspired with others to take advantage of government programs designed to assist struggling businesses during the COVID-19 epidemic,” U.S. Attorney DiGiacomo said. “By submitting false and fraudulent applications, Hutchins and Soliman lined their own pockets, thereby depriving struggling businesses that were actually eligible for this money.”
Federal investigators with the FBI and IRS said Hutchins and Soliman used the loan proceeds, not for their businesses but for their own personal expenses. Hutchins is accused of making payments on residential properties in North Tonawanda and Lewiston, on a 2020 BMW and a 2020 Cadillac, as well as paying homeowner association fees on a Florida condominium.
Added Harry T. Chavis, Jr., special agent-in-charge of IRS-CI New York, “Hutchins and Soliman abused a system of benefits put in place specifically for businesses experiencing hardships. Instead of using the money legitimately, the pair stole nearly $2 million from the program while others still waited in line. Today’s sentencing means that each of these fraudsters will now face the punishment of their illicit, greedy behavior.”
The sentencings are the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Philip Tejera, the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Harry Chavis, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, under the direction of Rose Brophy, director of Field Operations, and the New York State Office of Professional Discipline.