NORRISTOWN, PA — Authorities are warning residents in Montgomery County about bitcoin and cryptocurrency scammers posing as law enforcement and threatening residents with arrest if they do not make payments.
Some victims have lost anywhere from $1,300 to more than $23,000 in the scheme, police said.
Scammers call from fake phone numbers that appear to be the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.
The DA's office said that a scammer claiming to be "Lieutenant McDonald" or a similar fake name tells victims they must make payments due to missing jury duty.
They then instruct the victim to deposit funds into a cryptocurrency machine while staying on the phone.
"Asking for a cryptocurrency payment for any court-related matter is a huge red flag," district attorney Kevin Steele said in a statement. No legitimate law enforcement agency, the Sheriff's Office or the court will ever request payment via a Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency ATM. Further, no money is involved if there is a warrant issued for someone's failure to appear in court for jury duty or for any other reason. A failure to appear warrant must be handled in a courtroom in front of a Court of Common Pleas Judge. Anyone who has gotten one of these calls should not comply with any of their demands and should not deposit any money into a Bitcoin ATM."
The Montgomery County Detective Bureau is investigating.
If you have any contact with the scammers, notify the Montgomery County Detective Bureau by calling 610-278- 3368.
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