Authorities are chasing a Maryland man wanted in a cross-country check scheme involving stolen identities, phony driver's licenses and a series of shell companies, according to New Jersey's attorney general.

Darrell Williams, 57, was indicted in December on charges he intercepted a $469,364 check from an Atlanta-based company and passed it through a series of shell companies in an attempt to pocket the money, according to the state Division of Criminal Justice, which brought the charges.

Authorities say after Williams got his hands on the check, he created a company in New Jersey under the same name as its intended recipient, opened a bank account for the company and deposited the money.

Police did not identify the company Williams allegedly defrauded, but said he opened the bank account using a stolen identity. He then transferred $232,921 of the money to two other shell companies he controlled, and then onto five more before withdrawing the funds as cash or cashier checks a few thousand dollars at a time, authorities said.

State Attorney General Christopher Porrino's office said Friday that Williams used a second false identity and fraudulent driver's license to set up the accounts for one of the shell companies.

The scheme was uncovered when the company that was supposed to receive the check reported it to its bank, Wells Fargo, which blocked a $105,702 wire transfer, authorities said. The bank notified the U.S. Postal Service, which in turn alerted New Jersey officials.

Williams, of Suitland, Maryland, was indicted on charges of impersonation, theft by deception and money laundering. If captured and convicted, he faces fines up to $150,000 and as long as a decade in prison.

S.P. Sullivan may be reached at ssullivan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.