8 NOVEMBER 17, 2016 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM Protect yourself from scanners, cops warn in Maspeth BY ANTHONY GIUDICE [email protected] @A_GIUDICEREPORT It may be the season for giving, but don’t give away your hard-earned money and personal information to thieves and scammers. That was the warning Captain Mark Wachter, commanding offi cer of the 104th Precinct, gave during the 104th Precinct Community Council meeting on Nov. 15 in Maspeth. “People are really reinventing the wheel on what they are doing to scam people,” Wachter said. One type of scam Wachter informed those in attendance about was eBay scams. In these scams, people purchase items up for bid on eBay, and when they receive the item they claim something is wrong with it and request their money back. When they get their money back, they never return the item and make off with both the item and the money. “Anybody could become a victim of this, including myself,” Wachter said. “A little word of advice if you use eBay, PayPal and all this stuff : make sure you get the product back before you actually refund the person.” Another scam the precinct commander warned of is loan scams. In this type of scam, a fake company — usually based out of state — says that they will give you a low mortgage rate if you pay them. This actually happened to a local resident who, for months was paying a fake mortgage company, expecting them to make payments to the bank, but they were just pocketing the money. “Before you know it, you think you don’t have to pay Ridgewood Savings Bank anymore for your mortgage because this company supposedly took it over,” Wachter said, “and they didn’t.” One scam that has been plaguing residents of northeast Queens, and is expanding to other parts of the borough, are mail fi shing scams. There was a case of type of scam happening in Middle Village a few weeks back, Wachter confi rmed. “Basically what happens is, if you write a check, these people put it in a special solution and it basically takes off the name and the amount of the check,” Wachter said. “Cleaning the check they call it. Then they write it out to whoever they want. They sell special pens that you can prevent yourself from becoming a victim of this crime.” As the holidays approach, Wachter reminded those in attendance to not become victims of crimes of opportunity. He said to always be aware of where your belongings are while out shopping and do not leave bags of items in your car because if thieves see that, they may try to break in and steal them. The Precinct Council also presented Police Offi cer Malik Hirani the Cop of the Month Award. Hirani works the midnight patrol across the precinct and is responsible for making nine DWI arrests this year. After 68 years, Ridgewood liquor store gets a new owner BY ANTHONY GIUDICE [email protected] @A_GIUDICEREPORT A popular liquor store along Myrtle Avenue in Ridgewood which has been around for nearly 70 years has offi cially changed owners. Queens Wines and Liquors, located at 59-03 71st Ave., has been run by Herman Hochberg for the last 68 years, but he has sold the business to Annabelle Biei on Nov. 11. Biei and her family have been in the liquor store business for more than 20 years and have had a presence in Queens for the same amount of time. “I had mixed emotions about selling the store, but when I analyzed it, I would rather walk out than be carried out,” Hochberg said. “Ridgewood is my second home and it is a great community. I see it is changing and I wish I was younger. I couldn’t do the things I did years ago. I couldn’t work the hours and I couldn’t run the store the way I used to, and it was time to hand over the gavel.” Biei confi rmed that Queens Wines and Liquors will remain a liquor store and will keep the name. Although the name is staying the same, Biei has some big plans for the liquor store. “We will be decreasing prices throughout the entire store. Everything will be either the same price or lower,” Biei said. “We will not be increasing prices and we will match or beat any area prices. We are also going to be increasing the wine and champagne selections, and the store already has a massive collection of eastern European liquors and wines. We will carry wines and liquors from over 30 countries and will carry everything from miniature bottles to 1.75 liter bottles.” There will soon be a new sommelier on staff at all times at Queens Wines and Liquors to help customers with wine pairings and to provide them with information on diff erent types and regions of wines. The inside of the store is going to be renovated as well, and the new owner plans to remain open during the renovation process. Hochberg was much more than just the owner of a popular liquor store in Ridgewood. He played an instrumental part in bettering the entire neighborhood with his civic work. He was one of the founding members of the Myrtle Avenue Business Improvement District (BID), which helped bring in new business and make it the commercial strip that it is today, and he was the founding chairman of the Ridgewood Local Development Corporation (RLDC). “I love the community and will continue to be active on all of the boards that I serve,” Hochberg confirmed. “I’m not the type of person to sit at a beach. I’ve been working all my life, and I intend to serve on all the community boards I was on. I just want to thank the community for giving me a good run. I made many friends and am proud of the accomplishments of the BID and LDC and hope they continue. Photos by Anthony Giudice/RIDGEWOOD TIMES Captain Mark Wachter and members of the 104th Precinct Community Council present the Cop of the Month award to Police Offi cer Malik Hirani. Photo by Anthony Giudice/RIDGEWOOD TIMES For 68 years Herman Hochberg owned and operated Queens Wines and Liquors in Ridgewood, but he sold the establishment last week.
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