Antioch Schools FCU Reaps Praise for Preventing Rip Off

ANTIOCH, Calif. — Just in time to supply some Christmas cheer, the Antioch Schools Federal Credit Union is drawing praise in a Dec. 13th editorial in the Contra Costa Times and from the city’s Deputy District Attorney Lynn Uikema for alerting authorities to a man trying to rip off an elderly member’s CU savings.

Suspicious over a $23,000 wire transfer from the man’s share savings account to buy an annuity after years of inactivity, ASFCU CEO Rob Greaff and his staffers were keeping a close eye on World War II veteran Jack Whittaker’s account. Whittaker had befriended a man who convinced him to withdraw hundreds of dollars at a time, turning it over to him. Before the CU made the inquiry that led to the arrest of ex-felon Joe Gonzales —now serving a 10-year sentence for elder theft–he had stolen more than $100,000 from Whittaker’s other bank accounts. Only the credit union raised a red flag.