SCAM ALERT! Denver Police Report Rise in Bitcoin Atm Fraud Cases
Denver (KDVR) — The Denver Police Department is warning the public about a recent trend in which people are exploiting Bitcoin ATMs to extract money from victims of scams, with one victim losing $14,000.
According to authorities, the patterns and descriptions of current occurrences are identical to previous frauds, but the way scammers acquire money has changed.
Police provided an example of a victim who reported receiving a call from a suspect claiming to be a DPD officer. The suspect informed the victim that she had missed court and that a warrant was now out for her arrest. The victim was informed she needed to pay hundreds of dollars to escape jail time and was urged to go to a nearby laundromat and deposit “bail” money using the cryptocurrency option on the self-service banking kiosk.
The victim sent the original money requested by the scammer but was later told to send more. According to investigators, the victim lost a total of $14,000 before discovering the swindle.
Denver police stated that they would never call anyone personally to inform them that they have a warrant or to request money.
DPD advises individuals to hang up if they receive such a call and report it to local law police. People in Denver can phone 720-913-2000 and press 2 or go online to make a complaint with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office.
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