John Struna pleaded not guilty Friday in U.S. District Court in Cleveland for allegedly embezzling $2.5 million in a massive fraud case that led to the collapse of the Taupa Lithuanian Credit Union in Cleveland last July.

Earlier this month, federal prosecutors charged Struna, 51, of the Cleveland suburb of Concord Township, with one count of conspiracy to commit theft or embezzlement from a credit union.

A total of $15 million had been embezzled over 18 years by seven people –  CEO Alex Spirikaitis, three other employees and three members – from the Cleveland cooperative, authorities said, which would make it one of the largest credit union fraud cases ever.

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