Former Santa Cruz County, Arizona Treasurer Sentenced to 120 Months for Embezzling About $38.7 Million
On June 23, 2025, a federal court in Tucson, a city in Pima County, Arizona, sentenced Elizabeth Gutfahr, the former treasurer of Santa Cruz County, to 120 months in prison. Over ten years she embezzled about $38.7 million in county funds, and she had pleaded guilty to embezzlement by a public official, money laundering, and tax evasion.
U.S. District Judge Rosemary C. Márquez imposed 120 months in prison plus three years of supervised release, and ordered Gutfahr to pay about $51.8 million in restitution to Santa Cruz County and the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Gutfahr, 63, of Rio Rico in Santa Cruz County, served as county treasurer from 2012 to 2024. The case is No. 24-CR-08132-TUC-RM.
Prosecutors said Gutfahr moved about $38.7 million in county money through roughly 187 wire transfers into accounts held in the name of a shell company she created. She used security tokens belonging to subordinate employees to bypass two-step approvals, falsified accounting and reconciliation records and investment account reports, and did not report the stolen money for taxes. The proceeds went to real estate purchases, renovations to the family ranch, cattle-business expenses, and at least 20 vehicles.
U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine, Heith Janke of the FBI's Phoenix office, and Carissa Messick of IRS Criminal Investigation's Phoenix office commented on the sentence. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane L. Westby and Nicholas W. Cannon of the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section.
(Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于诺加莱斯市的圣克鲁斯县历史法院大楼，建于1904年，门前牌上写有县名。Ammodramus 摄，CC0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The historic 1904 Santa Cruz County Courthouse in Nogales, with the county name on the sign in front. Photo by Ammodramus, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
