Woman pleads not guilty to Red Cross embezzlement

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. (AP) - A Connecticut woman has pleaded not guilty to allegations she embezzled about $480,000 from a local American Red Cross chapter when she was the group's finance director.

Diane Williams of East Hartford was arraigned Tuesday in Middletown Superior Court and pleaded not guilty to first-degree larceny, which carries one to 20 years in prison.

The Hartford Courant reports that an arrest warrant affidavit alleges the 53-year-old Williams embezzled the money from the former Middlesex Central Connecticut chapter by inflating her salary over several years beginning in 2006.

Williams was the chapter's finance director from July 2001 to July 2010. Police say she admitted that she needed extra money to pay her daughter's college costs.

Williams has posted $200,000 bail. Her next court date is March 15.

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Information from: The Hartford Courant