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Two Oahu residents have been charged in separate cases alleging theft of state accounts totaling more than $750,000.
Michael Powers, a 48-year-old convicted felon from Pearl City, was charged Friday with attempted first-degree theft and multiple counts of second-degree forgery after he allegedly wrote 22 forged checks totaling $715,696.92.
Powers allegedly used state Department of Budget and Finance bank routing numbers and account numbers, state Attorney General Doug Chin said in a statement.
In the second case, Michael K. Mills, 30, of Kapolei was charged Friday with first-degree theft after he allegedly billed the state more than $35,000 for equipment and supplies that were not related to a state contract with Mills’ employer.
“State dollars are your taxpayer dollars,” Chin said in a statement. “People who cheat the state will be prosecuted.”
Bail for Mills and Powers was set at $5,000 each, and bench warrants were issued for their arrests, Chin’s office said.
Conviction of first-degree theft carries a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine. Second-degree forgery is punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.