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Officials: Scams target LI's elderly population

Quick ReadWhen Nora Coniglio of Mineola got a call earlier this month telling her she'd won a Publishers Clearinghouse Sweepstakes she was surprised. But when the caller asked for a $2,850 tax payment, she got suspicious.

Nora Coniglio with her husband, Mike at their

Photo credit: Howard Schnapp | Nora Coniglio with her husband, Mike at their home in Mineola. Nora was almost taken in by a scam (Nov. 18, 2010)

When Nora Coniglio got a call earlier this month saying she had won $285,000 in the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes, she was surprised, but not suspicious, even though it had years since her last entry.

That changed as Coniglio, 75, of Mineola, tried to collect her winnings.

At first, the phony Publishers Clearing House "representative" on the phone told her that a company employee...

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