A Glastonbury resident has warned others to be careful after he lost nearly £200 in a fake local millionaire bitcoin endorsement scam.

The resident, who asked not to be named, say what he thought was a legitimate article on a local Facebook group suggesting that a local person had made their millions investing in bitcoin.

The article, seen by Glastonbury Nub News along with a number of other similar ones, showed the "local" person being interviewed by celebrities, saying how they had become a millionaire through a bitcoin investment.

The resident told Glastonbury Nub News: "I saw an advertisement on the local Facebook group, saying how an air hostess had become a millionaire.

"She lived in Street apparently. I looked at the link, it said she was on This Morning, and had spoken to Holly and Phil about how she did it.

"The link was to an apparent story on the Daily Mirror website. How can this be fake, I thought?

"I looked at the process, and cost. Less than £200 to get going, and after a month, you could earn thousands. Sounds good right?"

First suspicions

The resident was told the system they said they used was automated. You simply set it up, took five minutes, spoke to a representative, and you were good to go.

"So, I went to the website, set up my 'trading' account, and then spoke to their rep," they said.

"She told me what I needed to fully set up, but then said I would have a call from the financial adviser to complete the process. This wasn't a five-minute job. First suspicion.

"After a few days, I managed to speak to 'Anthony'. Clearly not his real name, his English wasn't the best, and it took several days to get a grasp of what he was talking about.

"The red flag for me though, was when he asked how much I wanted to invest. I said I had put in as much as I was going to, £185, as it was the sum advertised, and that you didn't need more.

"He virtually laughed, saying that to invest in bitcoin, you needed at least £5,000. That's when I knew for certain it was a scam.

"I told him that I knew what he was up to, and would require a refund immediately. He tried to convince me otherwise, but I was not having any of it."

Heated exchange

After going through their refund process, the Glastonbury resident got another call from Anthony, again trying to get more money from me, and I asked where my refund was.

"He said he had not received any such request. I told him that I had followed their process, and would contact my bank should they obstruct this further.

"A couple of weeks passed with no action, then another guy called, asking me to invest yet again. After a heated exchange about my lack of refund, he told me to go through the process again.

"I did just that. But a few days later, still no refund, and yet more calls from various numbers asking why I wanted a refund.

"I contacted Barclays, and it's with them as of now. I'm not holding my breath though.

"The scammers are still phoning me, basically harassing me and stating that they have no record of a refund request, though their website says it's pending, and the emails also say that it's pending.

"They are crooks, plain and simple. Facebook need to stop these adverts, and people need to be more aware.

Fake and illegal

"I'm lucky, it was only £185, but others could fall into that trap. Also, as Martin Lewis, the money expert, stated, the celebrity endorsements are all fake and illegal. Something I wish I had seen before I went ahead."

The resident said he has now been in touch with Mr Lewis's researchers, who are building a case file on this kind of fraud and are trying to get the government and the social media companies to do something about it.

A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Police said: "We would urge anyone who sees offers online or receives calls out of the blue about investing money in any scheme, including cryptocurrency, to act with extreme caution and to carry out due diligence before proceeding.

"Legitimate schemes should make clear there is a chance that your return could be less than what is initially invested.

"Therefore, anything that promises a large return, often in an unrealistic short timeframe, ought to be treated with suspicion.

"Our advice to anyone presented with this situation is to make sure you properly check the scheme before investing any money and to take a step back to consider if the opportunity seems too good to be true - if it does then it is likely to be a scam.

"People should also consider using trusted accredited investment advisors too before parting with their money and use the Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) register to check if the company is regulated by the FCA and follow their advice.

"Anyone who has seen such adverts, or has been a victim of a scam like this, should report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or through its website.

"For more information visit www.actionfraud.police.uk/a-z-of-fraud/cryptocurrency-investment-fraud."