One scam defrauded Fox Communities Credit Union out of nearly $200,000. Here's everything we know.

Prosecutors described the large-scale fraud scheme that defrauded Fox Communities Credit Union out of nearly $200,000 as a "coordinated and systematic attack" by a criminal enterprise.

Here's everything we know about the scheme.

Who was involved in the fraud scheme?

As of Aug. 29, prosecutors have charged 17 people in connection with the fraud scheme. All of the suspects face similar charges of fraud against a financial institution and money laundering, though the value amounts differ.

All 17 defendants were charged with fraud against a financial institution. Fourteen were charged with fraud with a value between $500 and $10,000. The remaining three—Terry Hendricks, Deandre Mackontee and Demetrius King Jr.—were charged with a value between $10,000 and $100,000.

Sixteen of the 17 suspects were charged with money laundering. The only defendant not charged with money laundering was Addie Harden.

Five of the suspects charged with money laundering were charged with receiving proceeds between $2,500 and $5,000; eight were charged with proceeds between $5,000 and $10,000; and three were charged with proceeds between $10,000 and $100,000.

Mackontee, King and Brad Porter were also charged with organizing financial crimes.

The 17 people charged in connection to the scheme are: Deandre Mackontee, 25, of Allouez; Demetrius King Jr., 26, of Green Bay; Brad Porter, 50, of Oneida; Trivian Walton, 25, of Green Bay; Cornelius Steele, 28, of Bellevue; Stacy Swille, 42, of Green Bay; Dion Crawford, 57, of Milwaukee; Shayne Rudolph, 51, of Green Bay; Leona Dixon, 41, of Keshena; Sisely Miller, 28, of Green Bay; Carly Picotte, 43, of Green Bay; Shaylea Hernandez, 25, of Green Bay; Aliya Shaw, 18, of Green Bay; Destinee Clayborn, 26, of Green Bay; Terry Hendricks, 32, of Green Bay; Dennis Cutler, 26, of Ashwaubenon; and Addie Harden, 58, of De Pere.

How much money did credit unions lose?

Fox Communities Credit Union lost a total of $192,195.80 after reimbursing all affected members, according to the complaint. Community First Credit Union lost $23,144.45 to the same scam.

Ensuring members feel that their money is safe and protected is FCCU's top priority, said Chief Marketing Officer Melanie Draheim, which is why there was no hesitation in reimbursing each impacted member.

How did the fraud scheme work?

The Brown County Sheriff's Department Sargeant who investigated the scheme told prosecutors he believed it demonstrated "a high level of planning and organization," according to a criminal complaint. The "criminal enterprise" running the scheme "employed sophisticated tactics to exploit vulnerabilities" in the credit unions, the complaint said.

A scammer would call a Fox Communities Credit Union member pretending to be a representative of the credit union's fraud team. One scam victim told investigators the scammer stated they had noticed activity in the victim's account and asked for the victim's mobile app username, the complaint said.

Once the victim gave their username, the scammer would prompt the app to send a verification code, the complaint said. Believing they were speaking to real representatives, victims provided the verification code, which the scammers used to access their accounts.

Several victims told investigators that after the phone call, their passwords and information were changed, locking them out of their accounts.

Once they had access to the account, the scammer would transfer money from the victim's account into an account of one of the suspects in Brown County, the complaint said. The individuals receiving the money are referred to as "money mules," or someone transferring or moving "illegally acquired funds on behalf of another individual or criminal organization" to make it harder for law enforcement to track the origin of the money.

In most cases, according to the complaint, the money mule was recruited to open a new account through the credit union one to two days before the fraudulent transfers. After the funds were deposited, they would quickly be withdrawn or moved through a series of ATM transactions, additional transfers or purchases.

A large portion of the money transferred into money mules' accounts was turned over to "leadership within the criminal enterprise," the complaint said. Money mules would receive a smaller payment for their work.

Is the criminal enterprise local?

Investigators believe Mackontee served as the principal local organizer of a larger criminal enterprise responsible for the scheme, the complaint said. In a July 10 police interview, Mackontee suggeste he was recrutied by another man who acted as the intermediary between a Chicago-based organizer and local organizers, according to the complaint.

Mackontee is suspected of recruiting co-conspirators and "money mules" through Facebook. According to the complaint, Mackontee targeted people who expressed interest in making quick money and instructed them to open accounts at FCCU, CFCU and Capital Credit Union for "the sole purpose of facilitating fraudulent financial transactions."

Once recruited money mules received the illicit transfers, they were given specific instructions on how to withdraw the money, the complaint said. Sometimes, the mule would withdraw the money themselves, the complaint said, and sometimes, Mackontee would accompany them or make the withdrawals himself using the mule's card.

Money mules would typically receive a small percentage of the stolen funds, while Macktonee retained the remaining amount, the complaint said.

Investigators conducted an undercover operation April 10 in which undercover officers inquired about a Facebook post by Mackontee which was believed to be an advertisement to recruit money mules, according to the complaint. During their interactions, Mackontee asked about the officers' banking institutions and requested their online banking usernames and passwords.

According to the complaint, Mackontee explained to undercover officers that once fraudulent funds were deposited in their accounts, they would be required to transer $2,000 to Mackontee's CashApp account. Mackontee also attempted to recruit the officers to open additional bank accounts for the scheme and encouraged the officers to recruit others to the ongoing fraud operation, the complaint said.

Porter and King, who were also charged as organizers, were found to be recruiting others to open bank accounts and accompanying them to withdraw fraudulent transfers, according to complaints. In an interview with investigators, King also referred to there being people above Mackontee in the scheme.

King told investigators it was the "people above Mackontee" who wanted him to recruit others to the scheme and that he would receive a call from the people above Mackontee when fraudulent transfers were deposited into his account, the complaint said.

How did Fox Communities Credit Union respond to the scheme?

Discovering cases of fraud isn't abnormal for FCCU, Draheim said. The company has a dedicated fraud team constantly monitoring accounts and looking for signs of fraud or responding to members' concerns, she said.

The team works proactively to try and prevent fraud from occurring, Draheim said. The company also works closely with other financial institutions and law enforcement to address cases of fraud and work on prevention methods.

What was abnormal about the fraud cases related to this scheme, Draheim said, was the fact that they were connected and running at a large scale. The credit union first learned of the scheme through individual members coming forward with their personal experiences, Draheim said, which prompted internal investigations.

Once the company realized the fraud cases were not isolated incidents, Draheim said, FCCU involved law enforcement.

Moving forward, Draheim said FCCU will continue its prevention practices as it always has and will keep pushing to educate its members on how to detect and avoid scams. Education is a top prevention priority, she said, because "a lot of times, you’re the first line of defense in protecting yourself."

How do I avoid scams like this?

There are three important things to remember about phone scams, Draheim said. First, never provide your personal information to someone over the phone. Second, never provide your passwords or login information.

Most importantly, Draheim said, if you are asked to provide personal information or passwords by someone claiming to be a representative of a credit union or other business, hang up and call the company directly from a number you know is legitimate.

FCCU will never ask for your passwords or personal information over the phone, Draheim said.

Vivian Barrett is the public safety reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. You can reach her at [email protected] or (920) 431-8314.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: One scam defrauded Fox Communities Credit Union out of nearly $200,000. Here's everything we know.