Crypto ATM Fraud Costs Florida Victims $33 Million Since 2020

Florida residents have lost $33 million to cryptocurrency ATM scams since January 2020. Around 1,740 victims fell prey to impersonation schemes, according to the Federal Trade Commission. The fraud involves scammers posing as law enforcement officers and telling targets to deposit money into crypto ATMs.

Americans lost $110 million to these scams in 2023. In the first half of 2024, losses hit $66 million, FTC data shows. Charlotte County victims alone lost more than $1 million in the past year.

"Those crypto ATMs are used for only two things, and that is for drug dealers to hide their money from law enforcement and for people to get scammed and send their money to people who are stealing from them," said David Dietz, a detective in the economic crimes unit of the Fort Myers Police Department, according to Gulf Shore Business.

The schemes start with a phone call from someone impersonating a law officer. Callers tell targets they missed jury duty or ignored a subpoena, threatening arrest unless they pay a fine through cryptocurrency.

Scammers direct victims to find a specific crypto ATM and send money to a given wallet address. Some fraudsters tell targets to take the receipt to the clerk of court or police afterward to add legitimacy.

"They throw that in for an extra bit of legitimacy in the mind of the individual being scammed. If it was a scam, would they tell you to go to the clerk of court or police?" said Dietz.

Legislation to regulate the ATMs failed in Florida during the last two sessions. The bills would have required ATM owners to register with the Office of Financial Regulation and stores to post warning signs.

"The crypto ATM industry has legitimate reasons for offering these ATMs; however, they are significantly misused and abused for criminal purposes," said Karen Murillo, associate state director of advocacy for AARP.

AARP now educates local municipalities about passing ordinances since state legislation has stalled. Fort Myers Police Chief Jason Fields gave a presentation to the city council last summer about the problem.