Crystal Lake Man Michael Mackay Sentenced to 59 Months for Mailing Counterfeit Money Orders in 'Secret Shopper' Scam

Case from 2013–2014 (U.S. Attorney's Office latest release: Sept. 19, 2014). Published on Scammers.com Oct. 16, 2026; case status is current as of that date.

Michael S. Mackay, of Crystal Lake, Ill., was sentenced on Sept. 19, 2014, to 59 months in federal prison for mailing counterfeit money orders to job seekers in a "secret shopper" scam, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced [1].

How the scheme worked

Mackay admitted the following in his plea agreement, according to prosecutors [1] [2]:

1. The bait: People answered online work-at-home ads and were told they had been hired as "secret shoppers" or payment processors.
2. The fake money: They received a letter with at least one counterfeit money order or other instrument, made to look like it came from the U.S. Postal Service, American Express, Capital One or other institutions, in amounts of $500 to $2,000.
3. The "assignment": They were told to deposit it, keep a percentage as pay, wire the rest by Western Union, and email a report on the experience.
4. The catch: The wires reached the scheme's participants before the victims learned the money orders were fake, leaving the victims on the hook to their banks.

From September 2011 to at least May 2012, Mackay received at least $2.5 million in counterfeit instruments in packages sent to Crystal Lake from New York, Nigeria, Ghana and elsewhere. Using letters and Express Mail labels emailed to him by other participants, he mailed the letters and money orders to people across the country, and received at least $10,000 in wire transfers as payment.

The person sentenced

Michael S. Mackay, 48, Crystal Lake, Ill.

• Indicted: May 2013 on two counts of mail fraud [3].
• Pleaded guilty: June 13, 2014, to one count of mail fraud.
• Sentence: 59 months in prison, three years of supervised release and $26,971.39 restitution, imposed in Rockford by U.S. District Judge Frederick J. Kapala [1].

Red flags

• A job that sends you a check or money order before you've done any work.
• Instructions to deposit it and wire, gift-card or send back part of the money.
• "Mystery shopper" jobs that evaluate Western Union or money transfer services.

What to do if you're targeted

1. Never wire or send back money from a check someone mailed you. Funds can show as "available" days before a fake is caught, and you owe the bank when it bounces.
2. Verify a money order by calling the issuer at a number you look up yourself.
3. Report fake-check job scams to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at uspis.gov/report.

Case status (as of Oct. 16, 2026)

Defendant	Court	Status as of Oct. 16, 2026	Source
Michael S. Mackay, Crystal Lake, Ill.	N.D. Ill., Western Division (Judge Kapala)	Pleaded guilty June 13, 2014; sentenced Sept. 19, 2014, to 59 months; $26,971.39 restitution	[1], [2]

The sentence was imposed in 2014; we have not found a source on Mackay's current custody status.

Sources

1. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois, "Crystal Lake Man Sentenced To 59 Months In Federal Prison For Secret Shopper Scheme," Sept. 19, 2014. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/crystal-lake-man-sentenced-59-months-federal-prison-secret-shopper-scheme
2. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois, "Crystal Lake Man Pleads Guilty In Secret Shopper Scheme," June 13, 2014. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/crystal-lake-man-pleads-guilty-secret-shopper-scheme
3. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois, "Crystal Lake Man Indicted In Fraud Scheme," May 8, 2013. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/crystal-lake-man-indicted-fraud-scheme

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