Dale Phipps, Chief of Police

200 Shelby Street • Kingsport, TN 37660

http://KingsportTN.gov/City-Services/Police-Department• www.KingsportPDBlog.com

On the morning of May 14, 2022 an employee working at a local convenience store franchise received a phone call from someone claiming to be from corporate headquarters. The caller instructed the employee to take all of the money from the register and safe and transport it to another specified location and deposit it into a bitcoin depository.

The caller went even further with the scam as to text the employee a bitcoin deposit QR code and then sent an Uber to pick her up. The local store was ultimately defrauded out of $4,500 with this scam. This incident remains under open and active investigation by the K.P.D. Criminal Investigations Division, but as of this time, no suspect has been identified and none of the money has been recovered.

This incident should serve as a cautionary tale to help warn others. If you receive a call of this nature, please go through a secondary verification process with a known point of contact prior to depositing any funds, as it is almost assuredly a scam.

Kingsport Police Department Professional Standards Unit

423-229-9433 (Desk) • 423-343-9749 (FAX)

ThomasMPatton