The former co-manager of Kashechewan First Nation has pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud over $5,000.

Giuseppe (Joe) Crupi of Thunder Bay was charged by the RCMP in September 2016 after $1.2 million in federal government money was diverted from Kashechewan between 2007 and 2012.

Crupi entered his pleas on Nov. 7, and will be back in court on Jan. 12, 2018, for sentencing on the two counts.

Diverted money intended for breakfast program

At the time of his arrest, the RCMP said that as co-manager, Crupi was responsible for managing federal government funds obtained by Kashechewan.

The diverted $1.2 million came from the National Child Benefit Reinvestment Program, and was meant to be used to provide breakfasts for about 400 elementary school children in Kashechewan.

The RCMP also said that Crupi "misappropriated ... approximately $694,000 of this money for his personal use in 2008, 2009, and 2012."

The RCMP also said Crupi submitted false funding applications and reports to the federal government on behalf of Kashechewan.

Crupi still has a number of charges outstanding: one count of fraud over $5,000, three counts of uttering forged documents, one count of laundering the proceeds of crime, and one count of possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000.

Those charges are still before the court.