Salmon Arm RCMP said officers stopped a 75-year-old man from depositing $20,000 into what appeared to be a phone scam.
Police said a woman reported that an elderly man was trying to access the Bitcoin ATM on Hudson Avenue NE while receiving instructions over the phone.
Officers attended and stopped the man before he deposited the money. Police said the scam involved someone claiming they could recover bitcoins the man had lost in an earlier scam.
Police said the scheme targets people who have already been victims of so-called boiler-room scams.
Victims are contacted unsolicited and offered help recovering lost money for a fee. Police said that if victims pay the fee, the money is usually lost and previously lost funds are not recovered.
Salmon Arm RCMP Const. Andre Hodges said a general rule is that unsolicited phone calls, texts or emails requesting money, personal information or account information should be treated as scams.
“Anyone giving you directions to deposit money somewhere should be treated as a scam,” Hodges said. “We are getting to a point where not answering your phone is the safest thing to do, let the caller leave a voicemail and you can assess the need to callback or not.”
Hodges also recommended people share suspicious voicemails with a trusted family member who can help determine whether the call is a scam.
Police said the man was provided information about fraud prevention and how to avoid becoming a victim.
