Nevada's Lieutenant Governor Brian Krolicki has been indicted by a grand jury on Wednesday, on charges of mismanaging a multibillion-dollar college savings program when he was state treasurer. Krolicki, 47, is accused of two counts of misappropriation and falsification of accounts by a public officer and two counts of misappropriation by a treasurer.

The case, filed in Clark County District Court in Las Vegas, stemed from accusations that Krolicki, who was elected lieutenant governor in 2006, circumvented reporting rules in handling money earned by the state from its contracts with Upromise Inc., a company that creates college savings accounts.

The indictment followed a 2007 audit of the $3.7 billion Nevada College Savings Program, which helps parents start saving early for their children's college education. Though it does not say that any money is missing or that Krolicki profited or benefited, it charges that he did not provide the required accounting trail for large sums and destroyed documents related to the handling of the money.

Legislative auditors have said more money was spent on program expenses than they had authorized. They also said money was handled outside the state's accounting system, and the treasurer's office failed to set up accounting or internal control procedures.

Krolicki - the first Republican to announce plans to run against US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in 2010 - has said he is being targeted for political reasons. He said the indictment was the result of "a secretive process" that was unfairly orchestrated by Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat, to scuttle his effort to take on Reid.

However, Masto denied any political motivations and has repeatedly insisted that she had had no discussions with either Reid or his staff about the case.