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Union detective urges ban on cryptocurrency kiosks after local scams cost $261,637
Summary
Detective Jones told the Mayor and Board Commissioners that Bitcoin ATMs have facilitated fraud against local residents — 16 cases this year, 12 victims over age 70, and about $261,637 lost — and proposed a temporary ban while staff pursues legal clarity and coordination with the Banking Association.
Detective Jones of the Union Police Department told the Mayor and Board Commissioners that cryptocurrency kiosks, commonly called Bitcoin ATMs, have been used in local scams that cost Enid residents about $261,637 this year. Jones said the department has logged 16 cases, including 12 victims older than 70 and one loss of $70,000, and proposed “an outright ban on these machines, at least until we can get the case law settled.”
Jones described a typical scam: fraudsters impersonate banks or federal agencies, create a sense of urgency, instruct victims to withdraw large sums of cash and deposit it via a kiosk or into a wallet the scammers supply. He said kiosks charge high…
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