The former controller of Fuellgraf Electric Co. in Butler Township pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to embezzling more than $1.4 million from the company.

Paul Harmon, of Pittsburgh, who worked for Fuellgraf for more than 40 years before he was terminated in December 2018, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud before U.S. District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan.

At Fuellgraf, which supplies electricians and related services to industrial and commercial businesses located primarily in Pennsylvania and Florida, Harmon had day-to-day control over company finances and financial records and accounting, and had check-writing authority, according to information filed in the case by the U.S. Attorney's office.

From at least October 2009 until he was terminated, Harmon allegedly misappropriated company money and manipulated internal books and records to conceal the scheme, according to the complaint.

Harmon allegedly caused the company to issue duplicate or inflated payroll disbursements to him totaling $470,899.

He allegedly initiated electronic payments to his personal credit card balances, including $479,464 to cover his Citibank charges, $17,392 to cover his Discover card charges and $3,229 to cover his 5/3 Bank card charges. He caused the company to issue checks totaling $10,805 toward another credit card balance.

The complaint goes on to allege Harmon issued company checks to himself totaling $79,000 and checks to cash totaling at least $200,000.

He issued company checks to PM Accounting, an entity he controlled, totaling $205,664 purportedly for accounting work he performed for Fuellgraf, but no such work was performed, according to the complaint.

He allegedly concealed his misappropriations by creating hundreds of false entries in books and records to mask the true nature of the expenditures or make them difficult to detect. The misappropriated money totaled at least $1,466,456 in company funds, according to the complaint.

Ranjan scheduled sentencing for May 25 in the U.S. Courthouse in Pittsburgh. Harmon is free on his own recognizance.