Nassau Cyber Scams Target Victims Out Of Thousands Of Dollars: Police

NASSAU COUNTY, NY — Police are alerting the public to a string of cyber crimes. On Wednesday, April 19, a North Merrick victim was contacted by an unknown phone number. The man said he was from PSEG Long Island.

The victim was told that his account was two months late and was instructed to pay $2,998.13 via Zelle.

The victim complied, then became suspicious and called police.

Similarly, a 67-year-old man from Seaford contacted police on Saturday after he was met on Facebook by an unknown man advising him to connect with another man about a government program. After the victim made contact, he was informed that money would need to be sent in order to apply for the program, authorities said.

The victim made several transactions, amounting to thousands of dollars before realizing he was being scammed.

In Bethpage, an 84-year-old woman was victimized via a phone call, detectives said. A person falsely claimed to be a lawyer for her grandson who was arrested. He informed the woman that her grandson needed $9,8000 to be bailed out. He instructed her to withdraw the money and return home.

A short time later, the victim received another call, instructing her to wait at a parked silver SUV. A male Asian was waiting, took the money and fled.

The incident was reported to police on Saturday.

Nassau County Police Department urges the community to be on alert and to remind vulnerable family members, friends and neighbors about potential scams or frauds.

Anyone with information contact Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS or call 911.