APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) – According to the Appleton Police Department, seven residents from North Carolina that allegedly defrauded a number of banks and credit unions in the Fox Valley and across the country have been indicted.
In an alleged scheme to cash counterfeit checks, the group reportedly obtained more than $120,000 from various financial institutions in Northeast Wisconsin.
“It became quite a large case with several individuals and became something that pretty much all of Northeast Wisconsin in a lot of ways was affected by it,” says Officer Meghan Cash, with the Appleton Police Department.
The defendants allegedly stole checks from the mailboxes of a number of Wisconsin businesses’ and then would entice individuals from homeless shelters or rehabilitation centers to cash the counterfeit checks. In return, these individuals would receive a small amount of money.
It didn’t take long for investigators to catch on.
“There was kind of a typical way that these individuals were going about doing these crimes,” she explains.
Law enforcement says this is a reminder to always be mindful and proactive when dealing with sensitive financial documents.
“It’s always important for people to just be mindful if you’re sending a check [or] if you’re receiving a check, that you’re keeping track of that those things are actually getting to where they need to go,” says Officer Cash.
While Appleton Police adds that the various financial institutions affected were proactive to help the case along and in the time since they have done well to answer any questions from the public.
“All of our banks, credit unions, have been awesome about working with us and helping educate their members,” she says.
The defendants are still presumed innocent, as an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.
