Honolulu man pleads not guilty in Kamehameha Schools embezzlement case

A Honolulu man accused of siphoning more than $356,000 from Kamehameha Schools Hawaii pleaded not guilty in Hilo Circuit Court, putting a spotlight on how a large alleged insider scheme could persist across more than 560 transactions inside one of Hawaii Island’s most trusted institutions.

Zachary Heltz is charged with first-degree theft and first-degree computer fraud in an indictment that says the alleged offenses ran from Dec. 8, 2020, to June 2, 2023. Prosecutors say he used Kamehameha Schools Hawaii purchasing cards to make payments to entities under his control through PayPal, a method they say helped generate more than $20,000 in loss as part of the broader case.

The alleged theft did not come to light through a routine audit alone. Hawaii Island police said the investigation began after Kamehameha Schools Hawaii administrators reported the suspected loss on Nov. 16, 2023, following an internal review. The school later said it filed the police report after uncovering the misconduct itself, then moved to strengthen its policies, practices, training and analytics.

That internal failure matters far beyond one employee. Kamehameha Schools is a private charitable educational trust founded in 1887 by the will of Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, who left 375,000 acres of ancestral lands to establish the schools. The trust now operates three campuses and 30 preschool sites statewide, and has described itself as a roughly $15 billion institution. At that scale, even a six-figure loss raises questions about controls, oversight and how quickly warning signs were recognized.

Deputy Attorney General Thomas Michener told the court the case involved more than 560 unauthorized transactions and an offense amount of over $356,000. The court initially set bail at $500,000 and ordered Heltz to have no contact with 17 named individuals, including Vice Principal Phil Aganus, Head of Student Health and Well-Being Lehua Vincent, Operations Consultant Morton Carter, Director of Operations Support Sam Thomas and Athletic Director Kimo Weaver.

Judge Henry Nakamoto later reduced Heltz’s bail to $50,000 and set the case to return on July 30, 2026. Defense attorney Michael Green pointed to Heltz’s repayment of $69,500 and monthly restitution payments of $3,500 as evidence he was not trying to evade responsibility. Kamehameha Schools said Heltz is a 2011 graduate of KS Hawaii and said it is cooperating with the Office of the Attorney General to recover the funds.

For Hawaii Island families who trust Kamehameha Schools to safeguard student resources, the case is now as much about financial controls as it is about the alleged theft itself. The next court date will show whether the matter moves toward a plea or deeper litigation, but the larger question remains how a sustained insider scheme allegedly went undetected for so long.