Peabody police said they are investigating the scams involving multiple kiosks in convenience stores across the city.
PEABODY, MA — Peabody police are warning residents about a scam that appears to involve people being told to use Bitcoin ATMs across the city to pay fraudulent fines.
The Peabody Police Department said detectives are investigating “multiple scams” involving the Bitcoin ATMs located in convenience stores in the city. While police did not elaborate on the nature of the crimes, they appear to involve residents being told via phone or email that they owe money and should pay the fine via Bitcoin.
“Please keep in mind that the local police, State Police and any other government agency — FBI, SSA, IRS — will never call you and ask you to pay a fine using a Bitcoin ATM,” police said in a message to the community.
Anyone who thinks they may have been a victim of this scam is urged to call the Peabody Police Department at 978-531-1212.
(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)
