PITTSBURGH — A Cranberry Township man pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to a charge of embezzlement from a union, according to U.S. Attorney David J. Hickton.

Authorities accused Duane Rill, 52, of taking $13,496 from the Berry Metal Employees’ Association, an independent union representing workers at the Berry Metal Co. in Harmony.

Authorities said Rill, who was the secretary-treasurer for the union, wrote unauthorized union checks and made unauthorized cash withdrawals between March 2007 and November 2009.

Rill made his plea before U.S. District Court Judge Nora Barry Fischer. He faces a maximum of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He will be sentenced March 27, 2014. He is free on bail.

The Department of Labor, Office of Labor Management Standards, did the investigation that led to the prosecution.