Irvin Mayfield, local Grammy-winning trumpeter, and his business partner entered a guilty plea on Tuesday.
They are charged with allegedly transferring $1 million in public library donations to fund their jazz orchestra.
The arraignment comes after the case was delayed several times due to the pandemic.
Mayfield was indicted in December 2017. His bandmate and business partner, Ronald Markham is also indicted. The face initially 19 charges by allegedly using their position on the New Orleans public library charity board to transfer the money to pay for their band and their own six-figure salaries.
Two more indictments in the case came against Mayfield and Markham back in 2018 making a total of 24 charges against them.
The trial was originally set for October 2018 but was pushed back in later that year and again in 2019 and finally in 2020 because of the pandemic closed federal courthouses.