Kevin Lamorris McKenzie, a 49-year-old resident of Tucson, has been sentenced to 14 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and embezzlement from an Indian tribal organization. The sentence will run concurrently with an additional five-year prison term. United States District Judge Scott H. Rash handed down the sentence on October 16, 2025.
According to court documents, between 2015 and 2023, McKenzie served as Chief Operating Officer and later CEO of Apache Behavioral Health Services (ABHS). During this period, he orchestrated a scheme that defrauded ABHS and the White Mountain Apache Tribe out of millions of dollars. Authorities stated that McKenzie used two contracts as fronts to divert funds for personal gain.
Under one contract, ABHS paid more than $35 million to Helping Everyday Youth (HEDY). A secret agreement between HEDY and McKenzie led to approximately $16 million being funneled into a shell company controlled by McKenzie. This arrangement was concealed from ABHS. Additionally, McKenzie took steps to hide his activities through financial transactions involving his shell company and attempted to persuade a witness to provide false information to investigators.
From 2018 through 2023, McKenzie also entered into fraudulent referral contracts with co-defendant Corina Martinez while serving as CEO of ABHS. These contracts allowed money from ABHS to be channeled through Evolved Health Care Inc. (EHI), which was operated by Martinez. Although EHI was supposed to refer qualified employees in exchange for compensation, no such referrals were made. Instead, about $16.5 million was paid out under these agreements and the proceeds were shared between McKenzie and Martinez.
Martinez provided McKenzie with large amounts of cash, paid off $800,000 in personal credit card bills for him, and purchased luxury items including a $128,000 Rolls Royce Ghost and a home valued at $928,000 for his family. EHI did not perform any actual services for ABHS.
As part of his sentencing, McKenzie must pay restitution totaling $33,155,701 to ABHS. He is also required to forfeit various assets including real estate properties; vehicles such as a 2013 Rolls Royce, a 1966 Ford Galaxie, a 2018 Land Rover Range Rover, a utility trailer from 2018; a 2021 Cadillac Escalade; and $55,000 in cash. In addition, over $364,447 seized in connection with the case will be applied toward the restitution judgment.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI Phoenix Division’s Tucson office. The prosecution was handled by the Financial Crimes and Public Corruption Unit at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona in Tucson.
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