Initial court date set for former Wilmington Trust president facing fraud, conspiracy charges

A judge has rescheduled an initial court appearance for former Wilmington Trust president Robert Harra Jr., who is facing fraud and conspiracy charges in a federal investigation into the century-old financial institution's collapse.

The judge set an Aug. 20 appearance for Harra after attorneys jointly asked that a court date next Thursday be postponed.

This week's indictment charges the 66-year-old Harra with conspiracy, securities fraud, and making false statements to federal regulators and false entries in banking records.

Harra is the highest-ranking former Wilmington Trust official to date to be charged in the investigation, which has netted several guilty pleas.

Former chief credit officer William North pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges in Wednesday's superseding indictment, which also targets former chief financial officer David Gibson and former controller Kevyn Rakowski.