Queens woman charged with bilking Hicksville woman out of nearly $1 million

A Queens woman was charged on Wednesday for allegedly scamming an elderly Hicksville woman out of nearly $1 million over the course of three months, Nassau police said.

The 70-year-old victim received a call claiming she was involved in a crime in India and needed to withdraw funds in order to "rectify the situation," police said. 

Commissioner of Police Patrick Ryder said she was first contacted by someone claiming to be with the "consulate of India," who then transferred her to someone claiming to be with the New Delhi police. They told her they were investigating a money laundering crime and would send her money back once it was resolved.

The woman, who is Indian-American, complied and withdrew $919,000 between June 29 and July 27. Ryder said the "elaborate" nature of the scam, including that it involved two fake agencies from her "home country," was part of what allowed it to work.

"She's been a nurse here and just retired after completing so many years of serving people in the hospital doing good deeds, and now she's out her entire retirement," the commissioner said about the victim.

On Tuesday, the Hicksville woman was contacted again and instructed she needed to purchase an additional $300,000 in gold bars and coins, police said.

The victim called the police after she reached out to a friend who told her she was being scammed, according to Ryder.

The Nassau County Police Department earlier Thursday identified the suspect as Fnu Tierigeli, 32, of Woodside, but later said "Fnu" was an acronym for "first name unknown," and that they did not know her first name. She was placed under arrest without incident, police said.

The commissioner said Tierigeli was not the only person involved with the alleged scam. The victim spoke to at least one male over the phone, for example.

"We believe there are more people behind this and we are continuing to work this case as we speak," Ryder told reporters Thursday. "We'll hopefully find other people involved."

The exact nature of Tierigeli's role in the scam isn't yet clear. Ryder said police are unsure if she was directly involved with the scammers, or if she was simply hired to pick up the gold.

Tierigeli was charged with second-degree grand larceny and will be arraigned at First District Court in Hempstead.

Ryder said the victim is unlikely to get her money back.

"Many times in cases like this, that money goes overseas — it's gone," Ryder said. "I can't get back the $900,000, but I can prevent the next $900,000."