It’s the kind of sentencing members of the industry have long lobbied for, with a theatre owner now providing the cautionary tale.
A former Pennsylvania theatre owner convicted of falsifying insurance claims involving a flood at one playhouse and a fire at another has been sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison.
Federal investigators say New Hope resident Ralph Miller also must pay nearly $240,000 in restitution for claiming losses including a previously sold Harley-Davidson motorcycle and a grand piano found safe at his home. The insurance claims involve the 2006 flooding at the Bucks County Playhouse and a 2009 fire at the Poconos Playhouse.
Officials say the 69-year-old Miller has been ordered to spend a year on home confinement when he leaves prison.
A jury convicted Miller of fraud and money laundering last year. He was sentenced Monday.
Miller had said he hired adjusters to do the work and did nothing wrong.
