First, they secretly photographed the Social Security and bank account numbers of thousands of veterans and senior military members on a computer screen at a United States Army base in South Korea.

Then, they used the personal information to withdraw or reroute millions of dollars in disability benefits and other payments made to veterans. The stolen funds were later wired to the bank accounts of so-called money mules and laundered so that they could not be traced.

But they were.

That’s how a far-reaching identity theft scheme preyed on veterans, the Justice Department said on Wednesday, as it announced the indictment of five people on charges of wire fraud, conspiracy and aggravated identity theft.

“To our knowledge, this is the largest criminal case ever involving identity theft of military affiliated personnel,” John F. Bash, the United States attorney of the Western District of Texas, said during a news conference in San Antonio.