A Tyneside pizza shop owner (UK) has been sentenced to prison for fraud involving a state business support scheme during the COVID-19 pandemic. The man illegally obtained three Bounce Back Loans totalling £150,000, even though the programme rules stipulated that only one such loan per business could be issued. The Bounce Back Loan scheme was launched by the British government to support small businesses affected by the pandemic and involved a simplified loan approval process without strict checks. This made the programme vulnerable to fraud by unscrupulous entrepreneurs. According to the investigation, instead of using the funds to maintain and develop his business, the man spent them on gambling. The court found him guilty of fraud and sentenced him to actual imprisonment. The case represents yet another example of widespread abuse of the state emergency lending scheme launched during the pandemic. British authorities have repeatedly stated that investigations into cases of covid loan fraud are ongoing and have promised to hold the guilty accountable, despite several years having passed since the programme's launch.