Hawai‘i Police Department
Hāmākua Community Policing Section
Officer Joseph Rocha
Phone: (808) 775-7533
Media Release
The Hawai‘i Police Department is warning the public about a recent Paypal scam on island. Members of the public have reported recently receiving email with instructions to contact the Paypal customer service number from the phone number provided to verify a purchase of Bitcoin. The scam states that failure to call to dispute the charge within 24 hours will result in a large monetary charge to the credit card attached to the Paypal account.
If you receive this type of scam email, police encourage you to contact Paypal directly to verify a charge and to not call the number provided in the email. If you have not purchased Bitcoin or do not have a Paypal account, you can block the sender. If you feel that you have been a victim of this scam, please call the police department’s non- emergency line at (808) 935-3311.