AG Bird and Sheriff Bolton warn of local scams

A 2024 IBX report shows 30% of Americans have been the scammed in the last 12 months with an average loss of $1,600 per victim.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird met with the Creston Police Department and Union County Sheriff’s Office Friday afternoon to talk about some of the scams impacting the area.

Crypto ATM

“I talked to them about some of the trends that I have been seeing,” Bird explained. “Unfortunately, it came up one of the trends we’ve been really worried about is the crypto ATMs where people are losing a lot of money is also a problem here in Union County. Which is unfortunately no surprise, but it’s terrible.”

Cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency not regulated by a bank or financial institution. It may be used for purchases or investments. Crypto ATMs work like a regular ATM, converting traditional currency into cryptocurrency like Bitcoin for a fee, but scammers are using these machines to exploit Iowans.

Consumer Advocacy Officer Sonya Sellmeyer said one tactic being used is a romance scam. “The victim meets a romantic interest online or on a dating app, gains the victim’s trust, then makes a request for money due to a medical emergency, legal fees or other emotional and urgent plea that tugs at your heartstrings,” she said. “The scammer then requests the funds be deposited at a cryptocurrency ATM into a crypto wallet address provided by the scammer, that the victim does not control. Once you deposit money into an uncontrolled cryptocurrency wallet, the money is gone.”

The second tactic she explained is an investment opportunity promising huge returns. “These interactions can begin as a simple text message or email, but the scammer will often direct the victim to use an online message platform such as WhatsApp or Telegram to continue the dialog,” Sellmeyer said. “After the victim makes an investment which appears to be earning the promised returns additional funds will be requested. The scammer then directs the victim to place the investment money into a cryptocurrency ATM.”

Union County Sheriff Brian Bolton said no one is above falling for a scam anymore. “They are getting so advanced,” he said. “With AI technology, it’s amazing what they can do.”

Bird warns anyone sending someone to a cryptocurrency ATM is a scam. “I think it’s important to let people know to never put money into one of these machines and to call my office if you think you should,” Bird said. “Call my office and we’ll help explain the situation. Call your local law enforcement and talk to them because these scammers are very convincing.”

Bolton said Chief Deputy Dan McNeill hopes to speak with local banks about having conversations with patrons pulling out large sums of cash. “Don’t be nosy, but have a conversation,” Bolton said. “If they’re pulling it out to put it in a Bitcoin machine, tell them that might not be the best idea.”

Jury Duty

Another scam affecting the area are calls about missing jury duty.

“That is where a fake law enforcement con-artist, they’re not a real member of law enforcement, will call an Iowan and say they missed jury duty, and they have to pay a fine or they will be taken to jail,” Bird said. “There are some Iowans that paid money because they were concerned they missed jury duty. These scammers would use caller ID to make it look like they were calling from law enforcement. They sounded very official. It was convincing.”

In a case earlier this month, a central Iowa woman received a voicemail saying that she needed to call back because there was a civil case against her. When she returned the call, her phone’s caller ID showed she was contacting the “Polk County Sheriff’s Office.” In reality, she was talking to a scammer. The scammer claimed that he had receipts of when her jury summons had been delivered and asked why she was not there.

The woman became suspicious when the scammer used her maiden name—which changed five years ago—and began asking questions. The scammer hung up to “look into” the error and said that he would call the woman back. During that time, she searched the official number for the Polk County Sheriff’s Office and realized that it did not match the number that called her. She confronted the scammer when he called back. He immediately pressured the woman by threatening to detain her and telling her that she will need to pay fines as part of the “civil process.” The woman hung up the phone and reported the scam to the Iowa Attorney General’s office.

“Local law enforcement will never ask for money over the phone,” Bolton said. He encourages people to call or visit the Union County Law Enforcement Center if unsure.

Having been in office only two months, Bolton said it was great to hear from Bird about different things going on around the state and what her office is doing to step in and protect Iowans.

“It was super encouraging just to have a conversation with her and for all the guys to meet her,” he said.