Investors think it's the currency of the future, but bitcoin fraud artists are already cashing in, and a Vancouver man has learned a tough lesson about how and where to purchase the virtual coin.

Nathan Sellyn is convinced bitcoins are the currency of the future. So last November, he purchased 1.25 bitcoins on a website called Crowd Coin for just under $1200 dollars. He thought he was getting a deal, so he clicked on the site's Interac e-purchase button and transferred the cash.

The bitcoins were supposed to arrive within five business days. That was nearly four months ago.

"The fact that there was no contact information, no user testimonials, a whole host of things should have been red flags, but at the time because I was greedy and lazy, none of those were enough to deter me from making the purchase," said Sellyn.

Sellyn did some cyber sleuthing, trying to figure out who was behind the Crowd Coin website.

The site was last registered to a man named Travis in Ontario. Sellyn says he called the phone number linked to the website registration.

"I asked about my bitcoins. There was a long pause and then he said I believe you are a fraud. I'm the fraud! And he hung up," said Sellyn.

Consumer reporter Lynda Steele tried reaching the alleged bitcoin vendor on Sellyn’s behalf. When she asked about Sellyn’s purchase on the Crowd Coin website, Travis again accused Sellyn of being a fraud.

So what do police have to say about the bitcoin fiasco?

"People need to remember to do their homework before they hand over their money. Instead of doing it on the back end and trying to recover their money," said Constable Brian Montague of the Vancouver Police Department, “Often the money is long gone by the time the consumer or police catch up with them."

Vancouver police say they’ve only heard of one other case, while the RCMP say the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre has heard of a few “ransomware” frauds involving bitcoin.

Still, despite the costly lesson, Sellyn’s still a believer in bitcoins.

"It’s not a fad. Just do your homework before getting involved," he said.