Roger Trent Melchor Pleads Guilty to COVID-19 Relief Fraud

INDIAN TRAIL, NC (U.S. Attorney’s Office) — Roger Trent Melchor, 56, of Indian Trail, North Carolina, pleaded guilty to wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining $32,000 in COVID-19 disaster relief loans. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina, Melchor used false information between July 2020 and May 2021 to apply for loans through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.

Melchor, operating under the name of his company, “RSTR Sanitizing,” submitted fraudulent applications that included false statements regarding his income and business revenue. He also fabricated tax returns and falsely claimed he had not been on parole or probation within the last five years.

Based on these misleading applications, Melchor received approximately $32,000 in relief funds. The Department of Justice also noted that Melchor had previously been convicted for conspiracy to commit bank fraud and aggravated identity theft, serving time in prison. Despite being on federal supervised release, he engaged in this fraud scheme.

Melchor faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for wire fraud. A sentencing date has not been set, and he remains on bond pending his sentencing.

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