Unlicensed Bitcoin ATMs Allegedly Involved in Crypto Scams for Profit, Claims Prosecutor

Bitcoin of America, a Bitcoin (BTC) technology firm, along with three of its executives, has been indicted for running over 50 unlicensed crypto kiosks in Ohio.

The firm is facing charges of money laundering, conspiracy and other crimes. The indictment accuses the firm of knowingly benefiting from victims of cryptocurrency scams, and being able to operate due to “written misrepresentations regarding the nature of their business to government agencies” that helped it run the kiosks without a money transfer license.

Romance scammers, law enforcement impersonators, and robocallers exploited the lack of Anti-Money Laundering protections in the firm’s systems to transfer funds out of users’ crypto wallets.

In one instance, an elderly gentleman lost $11,250 in three transactions to one of the dodgy kiosks in under an hour. Authorities seized 52 Bitcoin ATMs last week, but the firm has more in Ohio and other states. Bitcoin of America made $3.5 million in profit from cash deposits at these unlawful kiosks in 2021.