CLEVELAND – Authorities unsealed federal indictments against seven more fraudulent borrowers from St. Paul Croatian FCU, making a total of 26 individuals charged so far in the 2010 failure of the one-time $240-million credit union.
Among the latest charged is Arben Alia, who allegedly obtained several loans totaling $4.5 million with the assistance of Anthony Raguz, St. Paul Croatian’s CEO. The indictment alleges Alia obtained some of the loans with friends and in-laws in order to fund various gambling excursions as well as to purchase and renovate Milano’s Bar and Grill in Willowick, Ohio.
Alia allegedly paid Raguz $100,000 in bribes to approve the loans, which he never had any intention of repaying.
NCUA estimates the losses caused by the St. Paul Croatian failure at around $170 million, making it the biggest credit union fraud ever.
The charges against Alia are similar to those against Koljo Nikolovski, a Balkans crime lord who last month was sentenced to 18 years in prison for obtaining $6 million in fraudulent loans through friends and family members, most of which he wired to banks in Macedonia and Albania.
In the latest indictments, Skender Demiri, 36, was charged with obtaining $1.6 million in fraudulent loans between 2004 and 2010, even though he had already defaulted on other loans. Demiri allegedly paid Raguz $50,000 in bribes to approve the loans.
Also charged in the case is well-known Cleveland developer E. Eddy Zai, who allegedly received almost $19 million to help finance his business ventures. Zai’s father-in-law and business partner, Ted Vannelli, has pleaded guilty to paying Raguz bribes and has agreed to testify in the case.
