Seminole County gas station stops Bitcoin ATM scams

Seminole County gas station stops Bitcoin ATM scams

Scammers are targeting Central Floridians through Bitcoin ATMs, but a gas station in Seminole County is helping prevent victims from losing their money.

Haroon Anwar and his daughter own the Mobil gas station on Sanford Avenue near the Orlando Sanford Airport. He says his family and employees have saved customers more than $100,000 by stopping fraudulent transactions.

"Yesterday the guy I stopped was in his 50s, and he was shaking when I stopped him. That was his lifetime savings," Anwar said.

Scammers often instruct victims to deposit money into Bitcoin machines, promising dire consequences if they don’t comply. Once the money is deposited and the transaction is completed, it cannot be recovered.

Anwar recalled a recent incident where a victim was told to pay $15,000 but only had $9,000.

"So then we called the police, and then they hung up on him," he said. "We do that every damn day."

Anwar said his efforts to intervene have not gone unnoticed.

"People send us love letters, thank-you letters, trying to buy us dinner," he said.

Authorities warn that no legitimate organization — such as law enforcement, schools, hospitals, the post office, or insurance companies — will ever ask for payment in Bitcoin.