Man pleads guilty to $130,000 fraud charges

WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) – A man will spend more than 5 years in prison after being accused of stealing over $100,000.

Yuhanna Muhammad McCallum was sentenced to a minimum of 5 years and 7 months and a maximum of 7 years and nine months.

McCallum pleaded guilty to detecting theft and obtaining property valued at more than $100,000 under false pretenses.

According to court documents, McCallum was the head of a late-2021 audit scheme that cost two local credit unions more than $130,000 in just six months.

“McCallum convinced more than a dozen other people to help in the scheme by instructing them to open accounts at Excite Credit Union and Corning Credit Union so he could deposit thousands of dollars in bad checks,” the press release states.

Officials said the scam gained notoriety this year when TikTok users showed their audience how to use a similar scheme, portraying it as a glitch.

McCallum reportedly spent the money on luxury items such as designer shoes, clothing, jewelry and travel. Detective M. Eick of the Wilmington Police Department was able to identify him from the ATM video, even though McCallum was wearing a mask. Detective Eick also found text messages from McCallum’s phone that described the entire scheme and attempted to implicate several people, including a minor.

“People often downplay financial crimes, but these scams are not victimless,” said Janelle Cline, a prosecutor for the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys, which represented the state in the case. “Crimes like this impact the way our community banks do business, their profits and their charitable efforts, and can negatively impact the 99% of bank customers who do everything right.”

McCallum was sentenced to capital punishment for financial crime in North Carolina, a Class C felony. He was also convicted of identity theft in an unrelated scheme and ordered to pay restitution in that case. He was previously convicted on similar charges in New York.

“This call takes a scammer off the streets and away from his victims,” District Attorney Rebecca Donaldson said. “It also sends a message to other scammers looking to infiltrate our community that we will prosecute these crimes to the fullest extent of the law and protect our community members and businesses from criminals.”