Hicksville woman loses nearly $1M in alleged elder scam; Queens woman arrested

A Queens woman was arrested and charged with attempted grand larceny after a 70-year-old Hicksville woman was allegedly persuaded to send nearly $1 million as part of an elder scam, Nassau County police said.

According to police, Fnu Tierigeli claimed to be with the Delhi Police Department in India, telling the 70-year-old victim that she was involved in a crime in India and needed to send $919,200 to rectify the situation.

Police said the woman complied and, between June 29 and July 27, withdrew and wired a total of $919,200.

She contacted the victim again on Tuesday, instructing her to purchase an additional $300,000 in gold bars and coins so a CIA agent could pick them up and examine them.

The victim realized she was being scammed and called police, who set up a sting operation Wednesday afternoon in the parking lot of the McDonald's at 280 North Broadway in Hicksville.

Police used a bag of fake gold bars. The suspect provided the undercover detective the preapproved code word, which was the serial number on a dollar bill, in exchange for the money. Once she took the money, she was arrested.

Tierigeli, 32, was charged with attempted grand larceny in the second degree.

The Nassau County Police Department urged residents to remain alert to potential scams and fraud schemes and to remind vulnerable family members, friends and neighbors of the risks.

Anyone who believes they may have been a victim of a scam can contact the Nassau County Fraud and Forgery Section at 516-573-2815 or call 911. Police said callers may remain anonymous.

The arrest comes a month after the NYPD's Financial Crimes Task Force warned older New Yorkers about a scam involving gold bar s that it is currently investigating.