FREMONT, Ohio (AP) - The former superintendent of a northwest Ohio school district has pleaded not guilty to charges he stole almost $300,000 in school funds.
Forty-four-year-old Todd Helms was released on his own recognizance following his appearance Thursday in Sandusky County Common Pleas Court in Fremont.
Helms was indicted Wednesday on 19 counts, including theft in office, money laundering and tampering with records. He's accused of setting up a bogus company and sending it payments from Clyde-Green Springs district accounts.
Helms resigned as superintendent in September. The district's lawyer says the school system plans to sue him to recover the lost taxpayer money.
Helms is due back in court for a pretrial hearing on April 20.
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