A county sheriff in Texas has taken a power-cutting tool to a local crypto ATM after a family was reportedly scammed out of $25,000, sparking debate among crypto users over the sense of his actions.
According to local reports on Tuesday, a scammer had tricked a family in Jasper County, northwest of Houston, into depositing funds at a local Bitcoin (BTC) ATM by impersonating a government employee.
Jasper County Sheriff Chuck Havard secured a search warrant and cut open the ATM, which photos show was branded as being operated by Bitcoin Depot, to recoup approximately $32,000, including the $25,000 the family paid to the scammers.
Havard claimed that the scam caller told the family they owed $25,000 in fines and instructed them to deposit the money into a Bitcoin address, with the family then using the Bitcoin ATM to transfer the funds.
Bitcoin Depot was contacted for comment on the incident.
Crypto users question cops’ tactics
“Sounds like maybe government employees destroyed an innocent third party’s property and stole his money,” Reddit user JohnDLG said on Wednesday in response to the news.
Reddit user Jad8484 said that “unless it was the kiosk owner who was scamming, this makes no sense.”
“It’s like confiscating all the money from a CVS register after someone bought a bunch of gift cards to send to scammers,” they added.
Havard defended his actions and reportedly said, “When thieves, low-lifes and scammers attempt to take advantage of the citizens of Jasper County, we will work swiftly and utilize every resource at our disposal to protect our citizens and their property at all costs.”
Tough case to crack, sheriff says
Havard said that such cases involving crypto scams “can be very complex and difficult to solve.”
He said his department has yet to locate the whereabouts of the scammer.
The incident comes amid growing scrutiny of crypto ATMs across the US and abroad.
Related: US DOJ files to seize $225M in crypto tied to pig butchering schemes
On June 18, Spokane, the second-largest city in Washington state, banned crypto ATMs in response to a surge in scam activity targeting local residents.
The FBI reported in April that there were almost 11,000 complaints and over $246 million in losses associated with crypto ATM scams in 2024, a 31% increase from 2023.
On June 3, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre recently enforced a 5,000 Australian dollar ($3,250) limit on cash deposits and withdrawals at crypto ATMs.
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