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Ex-Arizona lawmaker gets prison sentence for filing false tax return

Keith Allen Bee, who served in the Arizona Senate in the 1990s, was sentenced Wednesday to six months in prison for filing a false tax return.

TUCSON, Ariz. — Former state senator and justice of the peace Keith Allen Bee was sentenced this week to six months in prison after pleading guilty to filing a false tax return. 

The San Tan Valley resident owned a school bus company and admitted to reducing the company's profits and inflating expenses to manipulate his taxes.

Between 2011 and 2013, Bee would add personal expenses and the depreciation of personal assets to the company's books, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. 

Bee, who served in the Arizona Legislature between 1991 and 2001, admitted the tax loss resulting from his conduct was worth over $214,000. 

The 56-year-old was a justice of the peace in Pima County for several years until federal authorities filed charges against him in 2018. 

“Let this case serve as a reminder that all people, no matter their rank and circumstance, may face prison time when they cheat on their taxes," said U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino in a statement.

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