A police department intervened in a cryptocurrency scam, helping a woman recover $23,000 and highlighting the lengths scammers will go to swindle unsuspecting victims. The incident, captured in body cam footage shared in a public service announcement by Ohio’s Department of Job and Family Services, involved a woman who was close to losing at least $23,000.The footage shows a police sergeant in White Settlement, Texas, arriving at a gas station where the woman was putting cash into a Bitcoin machine. The sergeant intervened after the woman, who was on the phone with someone she thought worked for Chase Bank, expressed that she was in danger. The officer confronted the scammer on the other end of the line, preventing further communication and ensuring the woman retrieved her money from the machine.Heidi Turner-Stone, section chief of Adult Protective Services at the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, said, “Here’s our message: Your bank would never ask you to withdraw thousands in cash and direct you to a remote gas station to deposit it in a Bitcoin machine.”Andrew Champagne, a detective with the Campbell County, Kentucky, Police Department’s Electronic Crime Unit, stressed the importance of reporting scams immediately.”The most important thing is if you do become a victim of one of these scams, report it immediately. The sooner we learn about it, the more likely it is we’ll be able to recover some of those funds,” he said.Champagne noted that most crypto scammers operate overseas, making prosecutions challenging.”Some people kind of catch on to it early and lose a couple hundred bucks, some tens of thousands,” he said. “Our primary goal is to get as much of that money back as possible.”Scammers often help victims set up crypto accounts, exploiting their lack of knowledge.”What we jokingly say is these scammers are the best IT people you ever have. They can walk anyone through how to set up an account, how to get their money to an exchange and how to get it sent to them,” Champagne said.However, the notion that once money is gone, it’s gone, is not always true.”What’s unique about cryptocurrencies is all those transactional histories — publicly available. Anybody can go and look at it. It’s difficult to understand it sometimes, but once you do, you can actually trace those funds. And if we’re able to trace them and trace them early, we’re able to seize them,” Champagne said.Champagne highlighted the importance of overcoming embarrassment and quickly reporting scams involving things like fake romantic relationships and fraudulent investment schemes.”Embarrassment is probably the biggest thing we fight. You know, people are embarrassed to report. But again, it’s so important to report and report early,” he said. “Don’t be embarrassed and call immediately.”Campbell County has opened an account on a cryptocurrency exchange called Kraken, which functions like a digital bank. The Kraken exchange will allow police to convert recovered crypto cash, such as Bitcoin, back into U.S. dollars, which will then be returned to victims.
A police department intervened in a cryptocurrency scam, helping a woman recover $23,000 and highlighting the lengths scammers will go to swindle unsuspecting victims. The incident, captured in body cam footage shared in a public service announcement by Ohio’s Department of Job and Family Services, involved a woman who was close to losing at least $23,000.
The footage shows a police sergeant in White Settlement, Texas, arriving at a gas station where the woman was putting cash into a Bitcoin machine. The sergeant intervened after the woman, who was on the phone with someone she thought worked for Chase Bank, expressed that she was in danger. The officer confronted the scammer on the other end of the line, preventing further communication and ensuring the woman retrieved her money from the machine.
Heidi Turner-Stone, section chief of Adult Protective Services at the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, said, “Here’s our message: Your bank would never ask you to withdraw thousands in cash and direct you to a remote gas station to deposit it in a Bitcoin machine.”
Andrew Champagne, a detective with the Campbell County, Kentucky, Police Department’s Electronic Crime Unit, stressed the importance of reporting scams immediately.
“The most important thing is if you do become a victim of one of these scams, report it immediately. The sooner we learn about it, the more likely it is we’ll be able to recover some of those funds,” he said.
Champagne noted that most crypto scammers operate overseas, making prosecutions challenging.
“Some people kind of catch on to it early and lose a couple hundred bucks, some tens of thousands,” he said. “Our primary goal is to get as much of that money back as possible.”
Scammers often help victims set up crypto accounts, exploiting their lack of knowledge.
“What we jokingly say is these scammers are the best IT people you ever have. They can walk anyone through how to set up an account, how to get their money to an exchange and how to get it sent to them,” Champagne said.
However, the notion that once money is gone, it’s gone, is not always true.
“What’s unique about cryptocurrencies is all those transactional histories — publicly available. Anybody can go and look at it. It’s difficult to understand it sometimes, but once you do, you can actually trace those funds. And if we’re able to trace them and trace them early, we’re able to seize them,” Champagne said.
Champagne highlighted the importance of overcoming embarrassment and quickly reporting scams involving things like fake romantic relationships and fraudulent investment schemes.
“Embarrassment is probably the biggest thing we fight. You know, people are embarrassed to report. But again, it’s so important to report and report early,” he said. “Don’t be embarrassed and call immediately.”
Campbell County has opened an account on a cryptocurrency exchange called Kraken, which functions like a digital bank. The Kraken exchange will allow police to convert recovered crypto cash, such as Bitcoin, back into U.S. dollars, which will then be returned to victims.