GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A company with a plant in Coldwater will pay more than $3.6 million after the federal government said it was not due the money under a COVID-19 relief program for businesses.

Exo-s US LLC, a plastics manufacturer that has plants in Coldwater and Howe in northern Indiana, will pay $3,628,819.44, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a Tuesday release.

The cash settles a civil suit brought against Exo-s by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, with federal prosecutors saying the company got a Paycheck Protection Program loan that it wasn’t eligible for.

The cash was paid out in March 2021 under an option that allowed businesses with fewer than 300 workers to take out a second PPP loan. The Small Business Administration ultimately forgave Exo-s’ loan. But Exo-s and its affiliates have more than 300 workers, the feds say.

The settlement settles a civil allegation that Exo-s violated the False Claims Act. The deal means there was no legal ruling on whether the company was liable.

“The favorable settlement in this case is the product of enhanced efforts by federal agencies such as the Small Business Administration working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, other federal law enforcement agencies, as well as financial institutions or private individuals who uncover misconduct to recover the lending program’s damages,” SBA general counsel Therese Meers said in a statement.