An elderly Bronx resident says he was almost swindled out of thousands of dollars after being notified that he won $250,000 in a Canadian lottery.James Capizzuto, 70, says he received a letter from Summit Financial Investments, congratulating him on his win. The letter was accompanied by a check for $4,700. In order to claim the big prize, the letter stated, Capizzuto had to deposit the check in his account to cover the taxes on the winnings, and then send $3,000 to Summit Financial Investments, based in Toronto, Canada. Capizzuto says when he called the number listed in the letter to inquire why he had to pay $3,000, the person on the other end of the line hung up.

Capizzuto then contacted the office of state Sen. Jeffrey Klein, who launched an investigation into the alleged scheme. Klein reached out to the Canadian consulate and was told that officials were aware of the situation and are looking into it.