North Huntingdon police warn of scam involving fake warrants, cryptocurrency payments

North Huntingdon police warn of scam involving fake warrants, cryptocurrency payments

North Huntingdon Township police are investigating multiple reports of a scam in which callers impersonated law enforcement and demanded payments via cryptocurrency for fake arrest warrants.

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On August 17, 2026, police received two separate reports from township residents who believed they had fallen victim to the scam.

The victims said they were contacted by an unknown individual claiming to be Allegheny County Sheriff’s Deputies.

The caller told them they had missed a court date where they were subpoenaed as witnesses for an identity theft case in federal court.

They were informed by the unknown caller that they were charged after failing to appear in court, and that a warrant had been issued for their arrest.

The individuals were instructed to then withdraw funds from their accounts and deposit the money into a kiosk at a location provided by the caller. They then received Bitcoin wallet QR codes via text to deposit the funds.

Police said the caller kept victims on the phone throughout the process and instructed them not to call anyone else or hang up.