Michael Ruksenas Charged with Conspiracy to Commit Embezzlement, Cl…

CLEVELAND, OH – A Cleveland-area credit union is belly-up, and a former employee is facing the music. Michael Ruksenas, 33, of Naples, Florida, has been criminally charged with conspiracy to commit theft or embezzlement from the now-defunct Taupa Lithuanian Credit Union, federal authorities announced today. The charges stem from a scheme that allegedly bled the institution of more than $480,000.

According to a criminal information filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Ruksenas, while working as a teller at Taupa from 1999 through 2006, colluded with Alex Spirikaitis (not currently charged) and others to exploit the credit union’s systems. The operation involved identifying members with insufficient funds checks and then deliberately honoring those checks, effectively covering losses through fraudulent means.

“This defendant is part of a group that took advantage of the trust of hundreds of people for their own personal gain,” stated Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio. The indictment alleges that Ruksenas personally benefited from the scheme, receiving funds transferred directly into his accounts to cover overdrafts. Further, from 2007 through 2009, while working as a home health aide for a relative of Spirikaitis, Ruksenas received a Jeep Cherokee purchased with stolen credit union funds.

Federal investigators say the conspiracy stretched from 2007 until earlier this year, culminating in the credit union’s financial ruin. On July 12, 2013, the National Credit Union Association (NCUA) and the Ohio Department of Commerce were forced to take possession of Taupa and place it into receivership due to its insolvency. Taupa served approximately 1,150 members and held roughly $24 million in assets before its collapse. The total loss attributed to the conspiracy is approximately $481,502.

“Michael Ruksenas is accused of being a willful beneficiary of a financial scam being committed on members of the Taupa Lithuanian Credit Union,” said Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland office. “The FBI will continue efforts to see that fraudsters such as Mr. Ruksenas are brought to justice.” The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert J. Patton and Derek Kleinmann, with the investigation led by the FBI.

Ruksenas faces a potential sentence determined by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, taking into account his criminal history and the specifics of the offense. It’s important to remember that an information is merely an accusation, and Ruksenas is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The government bears the burden of proof in this case.