Federal agents tracked down and arrested two Illinois men on November 10, 2026, dismantling a five-year financial pipeline that siphoned unauthorized payments through paper-only enterprises. The operation stretched from the Midwest to the Pacific.
Paris Baker, 38, of Chicago, was taken into custody in Thousand Oaks, California. Law enforcement moved simultaneously in Calumet City, Illinois, arresting 50-year-old Michael Sullivan. According to a criminal complaint unsealed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the pair ran a coordinated identity theft ring between 2019 and 2024, weaponizing stolen personal data to extract illicit cash directly from third-party bank accounts. The scheme sought approximately $3.7 million. It pocketed at least $1.3 million before federal investigators intervened.
The operation relied on an elaborate corporate fiction. Baker and Sullivan established business entities entirely on paper, registering the ventures under the names of identity theft victims whose credentials had been harvested without their knowledge.
Investigators uncovered at least six shell corporations fabricated for the racket:
Sebi Property Management
Sada Property Group
Vollen Medical Center
Acclimate Property Management
Majani Wellness Center
Fruitive Medical & Rehab Center
None treated patients. None managed real estate. They existed exclusively as digital conduits.
Once the corporate paper trail was filed, the defendants opened merchant accounts with at least three payment processors, including one anchored in Rockland County, New York. Posing as commercial vendors collecting ordinary fees, the defendants initiated unauthorized direct debits against unsuspecting account holders. The payment processors routinely cleared the debits, funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars into bank accounts controlled by the conspirators. The cash vanished swiftly—transferred across secondary accounts or spent outright.
The five-year inquiry required multi-agency coordination. The FBI’s New York Field Office and its Westchester County Resident Agency spearheaded the dragnet, backed by the Illinois Attorney General’s Office, regional police departments, and federal prosecutors in California and Illinois.
The defendants exploited financial systems designed to facilitate legitimate commercial transactions.
Jamie McDonald, U.S. Attorney
FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. detailed the multi-jurisdictional dragnet as a protracted pursuit to trace stolen digital capital across state borders and locate those orchestrating the siphon from behind identity facades.
| Case Parameter | Official Detail |
|---|---|
| Accused Individuals | Paris Baker (38, Chicago, IL) & Michael Sullivan (50, Calumet City, IL) |
| Primary Arrest Locations | Thousand Oaks, California & Calumet City, Illinois |
| Target Financial Scale | ~$3.7 million attempted; at least $1.3 million secured |
| Active Scheme Timeline | 2019 to 2024 |
| Lead Investigating Units | FBI New York Field Office, Westchester County Resident Agency |
| Prosecuting Jurisdiction | U.S. Attorney's Office, SDNY (White Plains Division) |
Both men face severe statutory penalties. Federal prosecutors charged Baker and Sullivan with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. The docket also includes charges of access device fraud and conspiracy to commit access device fraud—carrying up to 15 years—alongside a money laundering conspiracy count that carries a 20-year ceiling.
Aggravated identity theft charges add a mandatory two-year prison term that must run consecutive to any other sentence imposed under federal sentencing statutes.
The White Plains Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office has taken charge of the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ioannis Drivas and Daniel Listwa directing the prosecution. Both defendants remain under federal custody pending initial court appearances and formal arraignment schedules in New York federal court.