CHICAGO (WLS) — For the first time, the ABC7 I-Team heard directly from the Illinois secretary of state about a Chicago-area businessman accused of swindling people out of tens of thousands of dollars.

Alexi Giannoulias is now speaking out about the alleged scheme involving “Brandon Mr. Finance” that the I-Team first reported on last week.

Giannoulias said he is furious with “Brandon Mr. Finance” and the allegations he’s facing, and he said his office is prepared to fight for those who were victimized.

ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch

Consumers shared gut-wrenching stories, catching the attention of people across Illinois, including Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, who says he takes this personally.

“Folks who’ve lost a tremendous amount of money, who have mortgaged their futures, which breaks my heart,” Giannoulias said. “And now we’re doing everything we can to try and remedy the situation.”

The man at the center of the story is Brandon Ellington, who goes by “Brandon Mr. Finance.” He’s accused in a lawsuit of convincing people in Chicagoland to take out loans and invest in his business, allegedly promising big payouts.

The I-Team heard from more than 30 people who said “Brandon Mr. Finance” took their money and stopped paying.

“It’s to the point where I might have to do something with my house and move in with my daughter,” Laviner Walker said.

“Not only did you treat us bad, you used God’s word to rip people off,” Taketa Reed said.

Giannoulias filed an order of prohibition against Ellington and his company, Access Capital Today Inc., prohibiting him from “acting as an investment advisor or investment advisor representative in or from the state of Illinois… in the public interest and for the protection of the investing public.”

“Anyone who is giving investment of financial advice of any kind needs to be registered with the secretary of state’s office. This individual never even registered with us,” Giannoulias said. “We are working with law enforcement. Working with the attorney general’s office, to get to the bottom of this.

Giannoulias is asking the public to be vigilant. He says these so-called investment programs will likely become more prevalent, because of technology.

“With the advent of AI, and some of these scams are becoming a lot more sophisticated,” Giannoulias said. “They are specifically going after older, more vulnerable Illinoisians. They are going after folks in minority areas. They’re preying on them-it makes me even more upset.”

Giannoulias says to always check with his office before doing business with a so-called financial advisor-to make sure they’re registered with the state.

“If someone is asking you to leverage your home or take out loans or go into debt to make an investment, more than likely, something sketchy is going on,” Giannoulias said.

“I keep trying to reach him to get my money,”Walker said.

It’s unclear if the people who came to the I-Team will ever get their money back-but they say they won’t stop fighting for justice.

“If I don’t get it I don’t get it, but if i can help somebody else from losing, that’s all that matters,” Shederick Ricks said.

“Brandon Mr. Finance” previously told the I-Team the claims that multiple individuals made are not true and that he offered to fully refund every person who has not completed the program. He said he’s not interested in litigating this through ABC7. He still has not responded to the secretary of state’s order of prohibition filing-against him and his company.

Sam is in your side. If you have a problem you want Samantha Chatman and the I-Team to investigate, call 312-750-7TIP.