DENVER — Denver authorities have issued a warning regarding a recent scam where individuals are pretending to be law enforcement officers to pressure victims into using cryptocurrency ATMs for payments.
As per a statement from the Denver Police Department (DPD), scammers have been reaching out to victims, falsely asserting the presence of an outstanding warrant against them. The scammers insist that the victims must make a payment of a specified amount to clear the warrant.
Unlike conventional scam methods involving wire transfers or prepaid debit/gift cards, the scammers are now directing individuals to visit the nearest cryptocurrency ATM to complete the payment.
In a recent case, a victim was contacted by an individual claiming to be a DPD officer. The caller alleged that the victim had missed a court appearance, leading to a warrant for her arrest. The scammer demanded thousands of dollars for bail, threatening the victim with potential jail time of up to 72 hours if payment was delayed.
Under pressure, the victim complied with the scammer’s demands and transferred nearly $14,000 into a self-service cryptocurrency kiosk before realizing she had been deceived.
DPD stresses that authentic law enforcement agencies do not handle warrant clearances or bond payments over the phone. Warrants cannot be resolved through gift cards, wire transfers, ATM deposits, prepaid debit cards, or cryptocurrency transactions. Furthermore, law enforcement does not demand payment for warrants via phone calls.
Individuals who receive suspicious calls demanding payment for warrants are urged to end the call immediately and report the incident to their local police department. In Denver, residents can reach out to (720) 913-2000 and press 2, or file a complaint with The Colorado Attorney General’s Office at https://coag.gov/file-complaint/scams/.
For verification of a Denver warrant’s legitimacy, individuals can contact 720-337-0464.
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