The Sheriff in Jasper County, Texas, located a little over 100 miles northeast of Houston, used a circular saw to break into a Bitcoin ATM after determining it was used for fraud.
According to a Facebook post from the Sheriff's office, a county constituent was defrauded of $25,000 on a crypto scam, which they deposited into the machine. After securing the necessary warrants, the investigators broke open the Bitcoin ATM and seized $31,900 found inside it.
Bitcoin Depot told Decrypt that it “regularly collaborates with investigators to clarify when recovery may be possible” and “such efforts typically involve the receiving wallet provider or exchange, not the kiosk itself.” They also said, “We actively support and educate law enforcement agencies, particularly those less familiar with cryptocurrencies.
Even though the authorities have already recovered the cash from the ATM, it doesn’t mean the victim will get their money back. They must first go through legal means so that the authorities can issue an order to seize the stolen funds. From there, their only hope is that the attacker made a mistake and used an exchange that cooperates with the authorities.
Nevertheless, it’s not impossible—for example, the U.S. Department of Justice recovered $2.3 million in Bitcoin paid as ransom in the Colonial Pipeline attack. Still, it will be a harrowing journey for the victims to reclaim their money—if they’re able to recover it at all.
