BATTLE CREEK (WKZO-AM/FM) — A local hotel operator, who has been under federal investigation for years, has now been slapped with a big bill for restitution.
Mike Patel was charged with paying his workers less than minimum wage. When ordered by the federal court to make restitution, he paid the workers, but made them give the money back.
A judge sentenced Patel to two months in jail for submitting the cancelled checks as proof he had paid.
Patel, who owns motels in Battle Creek and Coldwater, has now agreed to pay over $150,000 to the workers he underpaid. This time, he will give the money to the Department of Labor to distribute.
