The Pennsylvania State Police, Troop M, Bethlehem, and the Northampton County Sheriff’s Department are urging residents to not fall victim to Bitcoin scams involving warrant payments.

Authorities said residents are receiving phone calls from unknown callers indicating that they are “Northampton County sheriffs” and that there is a warrant for their arrest for failing to report for jury duty.

Police said three recent fraudulent incidents resulted in victims losing $30,500.

They were:

• Dec. 20 — A victim received a phone call from a scammer indicating they were a Northampton County sheriff and had two warrants for her arrest for failure to report for jury duty. The victim made three Bitcoin transactions that totaled $10,000.

• Feb. 9 — A victim received a phone call from a scammer indicating they were a Northampton County sheriff, there was a warrant for her arrest and that she needed to make payments via Bitcoin. The victim deposited $4,000 in Bitcoin transactions prior to state police making a traffic stop and reporting it was a scam.

• Feb. 11 — A victim received a phone call from a scammer indicating they were a Northampton County sheriff, had two warrants for her arrest and that she needed to make payments via Bitcoin. The victim made two transactions totaling $16,500 before realizing it was a scam.

Police said residents who receive similar phone calls should hang up immediately, noting that law enforcement will never ask for payment over the phone and does not accept alternate payment methods such as Bitcoin.