Key Takeaways
- A Texas woman says scammers threatened her with immediate arrest and pressured her into depositing $23,700 at Bitcoin kiosks while she held her infant.
- Her lawsuit alleges Athena Bitcoin’s safeguards failed to stop the transactions.
- The victim reportedly recovered only about 12% of her money.
A US mother has sued Bitcoin ATM operator Athena Bitcoin after scammers allegedly threatened to arrest her unless she deposited $23,700 into the company’s kiosks.
Meagan Venable, a resident of Pearland, Texas, filed the lawsuit in Texas after she allegedly was targeted by thieves while holding her baby.
Lawsuit Targets Bitcoin ATM Safeguards
According to court documents cited by the Houston Chronicle, the scammers told Venable that she needed to pay “bond money” immediately or face arrest.
Holding her infant during the incident and fearing that she would be taken into custody, Venable reportedly made cash deposits at two Athena Bitcoin kiosks.
Venable recovered only around 12% of the $23,700, leaving her with losses of approximately $20,856.
Former Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann, whose firm represents Venable, argued that Venable’s case reflects broader weaknesses in how crypto kiosks process potentially suspicious transactions.
Dann’s firm filed a separate lawsuit against Athena Bitcoin in August on behalf of Douglas Schuler, a 62-year-old Houston resident.
According to that complaint, someone impersonating a Harris County sheriff’s deputy called Schuler in February and demanded money for a supposed bond.
He allegedly deposited more than $20,000 in a single transaction, an amount the lawsuit claims exceeded limits previously publicized by the company.
How Bitcoin ATMs Work
The complaints argue that Athena Bitcoin failed to implement effective safeguards despite knowing that criminals frequently use cryptocurrency kiosks to extract money from victims.
Athena’s existing protections allegedly rely heavily on screen-based warnings and customer attestations.
The lawsuits contend that such measures are inadequate when a frightened victim is following a scammer’s instructions in real time.
Once cash is deposited, the kiosks can convert it into Bitcoin and transmit the crypto to the recipient’s wallet.
Because blockchain transactions are generally irreversible, the money may become difficult or impossible to recover within minutes.
The plaintiffs argue that Athena could introduce stronger protections, including transaction holds, additional verification and direct intervention when deposits display common fraud indicators.
Bitcoin ATM Scam Losses Surged 31% in One Year
Crypto kiosk fraud is far from a Texas-only problem.
The FBI received 10,956 complaints in 2024 mentioning crypto ATMs or kiosks, with reported losses totaling $246.7 million.
Complaints almost doubled from the previous year, while losses increased by 31%, according to the agency’s 2024 Internet Crime Report.
Older Americans suffered a disproportionate share of the damage.
People over 60 submitted 2,674 complaints in cases where age information was available and reported losing more than $107.2 million.
Tech-support schemes produced the largest crypto kiosk losses, costing victims approximately $107.4 million.
Government impersonation scams accounted for another $44.6 million, while fraudulent investment schemes generated losses of about $38.1 million.
In a separate analysis covering the first half of 2024, the FTC found that approximately 86% of reported Bitcoin ATM fraud losses involved government impersonation, business impersonation or technical-support scams.
Athena Bitcoin operates approximately 800 kiosks in Texas and nearly 3,000 nationwide, according to the lawsuit.
The company has issued scam warnings since 2017 and says high-value deposits receive additional scrutiny.
However, the lawsuits allege that those protections rely too heavily on screen warnings and customer confirmations.
Why One Lost BTC Fortune Was Recoverable
The alleged kiosk scam involving Venable ended with Bitcoin being transferred to a wallet outside her control.
A recently reported British investor’s missing fortune presented a different problem, the assets were tied to a failed exchange.
The investor, identified as Chris, recently recovered dozens of BTC worth approximately £3.3 million, according to LBC.
Chris had purchased Bitcoin through Intersango after entering the market in 2011 with an initial £1,500 investment.
When the exchange stopped operating several years later, he could no longer access a balance then worth around £4,000.
The breakthrough came when lawyers reconstructed his ownership using account information and transaction records.
CEL Solicitors prepared to pursue proceedings in the US, but negotiations reportedly resolved the dispute before it reached a court hearing.
The recovered Bitcoin was subsequently transferred to an account controlled by Chris.
He intends to keep part of the holding while converting some into cash to improve his family’s living arrangements.
The information provided in this article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be, nor should it be construed as, financial advice. We do not make any warranties regarding the completeness, reliability, or accuracy of this information. All investments involve risk, and past performance does not guarantee future results. We recommend consulting a financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
