Woman loses hundreds of thousands via cryptocurrency scam

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KKCO) – One woman is out hundreds of thousands of dollars all thanks to an elaborate cryptocurrency scam that she knew nothing about.

The woman, who asked to only call her Sue, still has her home, but she’s now out more than $204,000. She said it began with a pop-up message on a laptop that appeared to be a security alert. That message said to call a number. So she did.

“He said somebody’s trying to take $14,500 out of your account but he said we’ve got to secure the rest of your money,” said Sue. “So, he had me go down, withdraw the money, $14,500. And put it in a Bitcoin machine. So that’s what I did.”

Sue said she had never heard of a Bitcoin machine before. However, every day for 13 days, she would deposit money into machines at various convenience stores. But the question remains, why would she continue to deposit more and more money?

“Because I believed him. I believed him. I really thought ok, somebody is trying to take this money out,” said Sue. “I’ve got to secure all this money. All the money went into my wallet but I never got the money. He took it.”

According to Sue, friends and even banks tried to stop her.

“I believed him because he said they were going to do that,” said Sue. “He told me not to say nothing to nobody. He said my phone, my computer, everything was hacked, to where I didn’t talk to anybody. I didn’t tell anybody about it. Not even my son.”

Sue said she kept her secret for months. Eventually, she did tell her son what happened.

“And I’ve got two friends who know,” said Sue. “My family has no idea that it happened. I’m just embarrassed. I really am. And people will say I’m a victim. But I’ve got to be a survivor. I’ve got to be a survivor.”

Experts warn that crypto scammers are looking for big hits.

“With these crypto scams, we’re not talking a few thousand dollars, they’re looking for a few hundred thousand dollars,” said Brian Watcon, retired special agent for IRS criminal investigations. “They will tell you to go down to a local Bitcoin atm. They’ll give you the QR code, the quick response code. So all you have to do is walk in there and scan the little code and start putting cash into the atm. It’s actually really simple, and you think you have control over your money. But you don’t.”

Watcon will tell you, the best thing you can do is hang up.

“Time is your friend,” said Watcon. “You may have to hang up on these people. You may have to delete an email. You may have to turn your computer off. But don’t react quickly. Go get a second opinion.”

It’s worth repeating, if a message appears on your screen, or you get an alert on your phone, don’t call the number and don’t click on the link. If you have concerns about your money, look up the bank’s real phone umber and call them directly.