Former Taney County Health Department exec pleads guilty to embezzlement scheme

The Taney County Health Department's former chief operating officer and chief financial officer has pleaded guilty to an embezzlement scheme.

Hugo Ricardo Huacuz, 51, waived his right to a grand jury and entered a guilty plea in federal court yesterday, according to a news release from the office of Jeffrey P. Ray, acting U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri. Huacuz pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, two counts of stealing federal funds, one count of money laundering and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Huacuz, who had been employed by the health department since 2021, served as COO and CFO until his November 2023 resignation, federal officials say. In his guilty plea, Huacuz admitted that he embezzled at least $258,976 from the health department in a scheme that took place from March 2022 to November 2023.

Through the scheme, Huacuz caused the health department to write checks to Argon Investments LLC, an entity he and his wife organized. Huacuz admitted to forging the signatures of health department staffers in issuing 15 checks that were deposited into Argon Investments' bank account, according to the release.

To conceal the scheme, Huacuz admitted causing the checks to be coded as payments to multinational pharmaceutical company Sanofi Pasteur Inc. He falsely reported to the health department's board that some of the checks were for items purchased from Sanofi, and he created false invoices to further the scheme.

Huacuz was placed on administrative leave from the department in November 2023 amid an examination of his job performance, according to the release. Huacuz reportedly withdrew more than $24,000 from the Argon bank account immediately after he was placed on leave.

The guilty plea indicates Huacuz used stolen funds from the department on personal expenses, including auto insurance, home construction items, travel, dental and medical care, and payments for Argon's LLC fees.

The guilty plea's terms note the stolen funds are subject to forfeiture and restitution, according to the release. Huacuz intends to seek a sentence of three years in federal prison without parole, and a sentencing hearing is yet to be scheduled.