A real snow job in Hewlett and Woodmere

At least 10 residents from the Five Towns were allegedly scammed through the Hewlett-Woodmere District 14 Residents Facebook group after paying an individual, who advertised himself as a neighbor, to do handy work or snow plowing. The person did not show up to complete any pre-paid, promised jobs.

The alleged scammer is Christopher Picone, who according to his Facebook page is a Hewlett resident. It is unknown how long he has been scamming people. Some Hewlett and Woodmere residents reported possibly related scams happening in 2021 through a person by the name of ‘Chris’ who also did not show up for pre-paid work.

It was not until the nor’easter on the weekend of Jan. 28 that made residents came together through the Facebook group and discovered that they were not the only people to be stood up by Picone recently.

In a District 14 group post requesting snowplowing recommendations on Jan. 18, residents discussed how Picone allegedly took their money for seasonal contracts to shovel and plow homes after each storm. For others, he promised to do handy work, taking deposits for supplies, but never following through.

One resident who said he spoke with Picone reported him to be pushy, messaging them every day asking to be paid prior to any plowing work, other residents did not have any direct contact with him at all, booking his services through neighbors for a discounted, bundle price.

Picone allegedly shut off his phone on Jan. 29, after telling residents he was on his way to plow, which he was not, and flat-out ignoring others.

One Hewlett resident, who declined to be identified, described Picone as a “petty criminal” and “professional conman” who “uses every excuse in the world.” A call placed to his phone on Feb. 7 yielded several rings, but no answer or voice mail prompt.

“God knows what we don’t know,” the resident continued. “There could be like a hundred people out there that have a similar story that didn’t even know other people were affected. Only until I said something, somebody else was like wow that happened to me too. I just don’t want to see him hurt anybody anymore. We all live here and we’re a tight community.”

The Hewlett resident added that if the community hadn’t gotten together to discuss their experience with Picone, he might have gotten away with it. Hewlett-Woodmere District 14 Residents Facebook group administrator Mark Philip created a follow-up post on Jan. 30.

“Many people are reporting to have been scammed by a local snow plowing business,” Philip wrote. “If you had a snow contract with a local snow plowing service and the contract was not honored, it is recommended that you call the fourth precinct to report (516) 573-6400 with whatever payment details and information you can provide.”

As of press time, Richard Lebrun, commanding officer of the Nassau County Police Department’s Public Information Office, did not respond for comment.

Lynbrook Police Department officials put out a scam alert via a community outreach Facebook group that states: “A male subject would solicit people looking for snow removal and request payment up front, and would not provide the service.”

“It’s very aggravating when someone steals from all of us and lives in our community,” said another Hewlett resident who declined to be identified, adding that they feel “taken advantage of.”