Victims lose thousands in cryptocurrency scams: Coquitlam RCMP

Coquitlam RCMP are warning people to be careful with crypto, after a fraudster scammed victims out of thousands of dollars last month.

In December, police say officers responded to multiple cryptocurrency fraud calls, after a fraudster posed as the manager of a bank.

Mounties say the victims were told that their bank account was compromised, and the thief told them to take all of the money out of their account to prevent further fraud.

Then they were told to put the money into a cryptocurrency machine as a trap for the scammers who had gotten into their accounts.

But in reality, the money ends up in the hands of the fraudsters.

Police say acting as credible individuals from banks or from the government adds legitimacy to the scams.

“A bank will never instruct you to withdraw money to convert it into cryptocurrency in any circumstance,” Cpl. Alexa Hodgins said.

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“These tech-savvy fraudsters are sending their victims to cryptocurrency ATMs to make the transactions. The fraudsters stay on the phone to guide the victims through the process,” Hodgins added.

If someone is claiming to be from a government agency or bank and are asking for cryptocurrency as these forms of payment, police say it is a scam and you should hang up immediately.

“If you are unsure if you are speaking with the government agency or bank, hang up and call the agency directly through their listed phone number,” police added.