83-year-old Bay Area woman warns others about Coinstar and Coinme scam and loses nearly $50,000

ROSSMOOR, Calif. (KGO) — An 83-year-old East Bay woman lost nearly $50,000 to a scam. Now she’s warning others about the call she thought she received from her grandson and why there’s no way to get her money back now.

Lois, who asked that we not use her last name, was home one Friday evening when her phone rang.

“A man said, I have your grandson. He was so distraught and crying,” Lois said.

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Through sobs, she explained: “I drank too many beers. I drove the wrong way down a one-way street. I hit a car and got arrested.”

“Don’t tell anyone. Promise me, not even my family,” Lois continued.

Lois promised and also agreed to help with the $9,500 bond.

“He said the court found a way for people to pay bail because a check took too long. We have an account with Coinstar,” Lois said.

You may have seen Coinstar machines at local marketplaces like Safeway. This is exactly where the caller sent Lois after her stop at the bank.

One by one, she fed $100 bill after $100 bill into the machine, taking instructions from someone’s crypto account on the other end of the phone.

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The next day, another call – this time saying the prosecutor had added more charges and increased her grandson’s bond by another $15,000.

“The extra charges were because the woman in the car he hit had a miscarriage,” Lois said.

Back at the machine, she went back, putting in $100 bill after $100 bill.

“It took me over an hour. Every $10,000 it prints a receipt,” Lois said.

And then a third call. This time it would be an additional $25,000 for attorney fees and court costs.

“What I had to do was just say ‘oh, I’m going to give it up.’ I couldn’t do that,” Lois said.

People tried to warn Lois, including bank managers who asked why she was withdrawing so much money.

“My story was ‘oh, I went to an estate sale and they didn’t take a check, that’s why I have to get money,’” Lois said.

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“They said to me, ‘Are you sure?’ I mean, they tried,” Lois continued.

The Coinstar machine itself has warnings.

“If you think you’ve been defrauded, stop. Well, I couldn’t stop,” Lois said.

And even another Safeway customer who saw Lois standing in front of the machine too long tried to warn her.

“Are you sure this isn’t a scam?” and I said, I’m fine, I’m fine and she said I think you should check it out,” Lois said.

It was this warning that finally prompted her to try texting her grandson.

“Hi, how are you? How are you? And he said, are you okay, how are you,” Lois explained.

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After talking to him, she called her daughter Lisa.

“She said I want you to sit down, something horrible happened,” Lisa said.

“I had heard about it before, but when it happened to me, I never thought it was a scam,” Lois said.

“It’s hard to believe that there are people who make a living scamming the elderly,” Lisa said.

Lisa says she spent four days trying to reach someone at Coinstar on the phone.

“Very difficult,” Lisa said.

In an email, the company apologized to Lois but explained that due to the nature and design of cryptocurrency, transactions are irreversible and Coinme no longer has the funds in custody.

A sentiment the company echoed in an emailed statement to 7 On Your Side, writing in part: “While we work hard to protect our customers through multiple full-screen disclaimers at various stages of the transaction process…we Let’s understand emotional manipulation scammers. used to deceive individuals…”

The statement continued: “…in cases like this, transactions are instantly sent outside of Coinme’s platform, rendering funds unrecoverable.”

Coinme also told 7 On Your Side that it has permanently closed the scammer’s accounts.

“They’re just destroying people’s lives. They’re despicable people,” Lois said.

Lois suggests families have a password or passphrase with their loved ones in case they call with an unlikely story or ask for help.

“Well, maybe it won’t happen to anyone else.”

Full email from Coinme to 7 On Your Side:

“We are deeply saddened to learn of the incident involving someone who was tragically scammed after being misled by a criminal posing as their distressed grandson. At Coinme, we take these situations very seriously and assist with investigations as best we can While we work It is difficult to protect our customers with multiple full-screen warnings at various stages of the transaction process, including three warnings on Coinme-enabled Coinstar kiosks. that appear when completing transactions, we understand the emotional manipulation that fraudsters use to deceive individuals, especially vulnerable populations. It is essential to understand that once a cryptocurrency transaction is completed and. funds are sent to the blockchain, they cannot be reversed. This irreversible nature is a key feature of blockchain technology, and is why we emphasize the need for extreme caution when sending funds to. a stranger. person or someone you have recently met. Our customer service team is dedicated to supporting scam victims, but in cases like this, transactions are instantly sent outside of the Coinme platform, making funds unrecoverable. This is like trying to recover funds that were sent via bank transfer and the money was collected at the receiving bank. We also understand the frustration with the time it took for the family to communicate with our customer service team. We responded as quickly as possible in an email sent on September 5. Coinme remains committed to continually improving our communication channels and customer support services to better assist you in these critical situations. We encourage all customers to be vigilant, particularly when asked to send money urgently, and to always verify the identity of anyone requesting financial assistance. »

Full email from Coinstar to Lois:

“Hello Lois,

Recently, you contacted our partner, Coinstar, and revealed that you believe you are the victim of an alleged scam. I’m really sorry to hear this happened to you; If you have not already done so, we encourage you to report the incident to local law enforcement using their non-emergency line and/or online at ic3.gov. Unfortunately, no account can be opened for you; therefore, we ask that you do not purchase additional vouchers and/or attempt to open an account. As your vouchers have already been used, we are unable to offer you a refund. I understand how frustrating this is; however, due to the nature and design of cryptocurrency, transactions are irreversible and Coinme no longer has the funds in custody. Finally, Coinme will fully cooperate with law enforcement after receiving a subpoena or search warrant and will provide law enforcement documents that may potentially assist their investigation. Again, I’m so sorry this happened to you. Know that Coinme wishes you the best! Please reply to this email if you need anything else.”