AG Brnovich Announces Grand Jury Indictment Against Woman Accused of Scamming Veterans Charities Out of Thousands

Phoenix – Attorney General Mark Brnovich today announced new felony charges against Chalice Renee Zeitner, an Arizona woman previously accused of faking cancer to obtain a state paid late-term abortion. Zeitner is now facing 8-felony charges for allegedly scamming veterans charities out of thousands of dollars. A grand jury indicted Zeitner on August 17, 2015.

“Individuals who prey upon the kindness of others for their own personal gain will be aggressively prosecuted by this office,” said Attorney General Mark Brnovich. “This case is a great example of law enforcement agencies working together to uncover the facts and make sure Zeitner is held accountable for her actions.”

During the cancer fraud investigation, authorities discovered Zeitner worked with Veterans Hope and Armed Forces Racing. Both organizations are closely connected with each other. In July 2012, Zeitner is alleged to have fraudulently obtained the personal information of the founder of Veterans Hope charities and his family. Zeitner allegedly used this information to open a credit card account under their names without their consent, charging approximately $25,000 on the card which Zeitner never paid off.

The indictment also alleges Zeitner, under the guise of working with Veterans Hope and Armed Forces Racing, contacted the Veteran Tickets Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides veterans free and discounted tickets to sporting events, concerts, performing arts and family activities. Zeitner expressed that she was planning a fundraising gala in Washington D.C. and that Veteran Tickets Foundation had been selected as a preferred sponsorship organization. The Veteran Tickets Foundation agreed to sponsor a placeholder on a racecar that was to be debuted at the gala. The placeholder sponsorship cost $10,000. Zeitner provided wire instructions to the Veteran Tickets Foundation for transfer of the funds. However, the wire instructions were for a personal account. The Veteran Tickets Foundation also purchased several thousand dollars worth of tickets to the gala through Zeitner’s personal PayPal account. All funds provided by the Veteran Tickets Foundation were used to purchase personal items. The gala was not held and none of the funds were returned to the Veteran Tickets Foundation.

On August 17, 2015, a grand jury returned an indictment against Zeitner charging her with:

  • Two Counts of Fraudulent Schemes and Artifices, class 2 felonies;
  • Money Laundering, a Class 2 felony;
  • Theft, a Class 3 felony;
  • Two Counts of Taking the Identity of Another Person or Entity, Class 4 felonies;
  • Receipt of Anything of Value Obtained by Fraudulent use of a Credit Card, Class 5 felony; and
  • Theft, a Class 6 Felony.

This matter has been jointly investigated by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. All defendants are presumed innocent until convicted in a court of law.

Zeitner has been behind bars since her arrest in May 2015 for allegedly faking cancer to obtain a state-funded late term abortion.

This case is being handled by Assistant Attorney General Scott Blake. For more information on this case, please contact the Attorney General's Office at (602) 542-5025.