The former CEO of Hacienda Healthcare in Phoenix pleaded guilty to two counts of felony fraud, the Arizona attorney general said June 22.
William Timmons, who served as CEO from July 1989 to January 2019, was indicted in August 2020 on a series of charges related to an alleged scheme that took millions of dollars from Arizona taxpayers.
Mr. Timmons and Hacienda's former longtime CFO Joseph O'Malley allegedly misallocated funds from the Arizona Department of Economic Security's Division of Developmental Disabilities and the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, according to prosecutors. Under the scheme, the former CEO and CFO allegedly manipulated costs to avoid repayments of state funds in favor of inflated salaries and bonuses.
As part of the plea agreement, Mr. Timmons agreed to pay $500,000 to the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System and $274,500 to the attorney general's anti-racketeering revolving fund.
Mr. Timmons' sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 22. He faces between 3 and 12.5 years in prison for each count.
The case against Mr. O'Malley is ongoing, and a trial is slated for March 8, 2022.