CITY ISSUES HOLIDAY FRAUD WARNING.

Byline: Daily News

Los Angeles city officials Tuesday warned the public - particularly seniors - to be wary of schemes to take their money during the holiday season.

``This is the time of year where seniors get telephone calls asking to help a charitable organization they are not familiar with or perhaps they get a call about a wonderful investment plan,'' City Councilwoman Laura Chick said in a statement.

``Regrettably, many of these unsolicited calls might be schemes to swing unsuspecting people out of thousands of dollars.''

Chick, who chairs the City Council's Public Safety Committee, and police officials have put together a list of tips to protect people during the holidays.

Some of the advice offered was to refuse to give out personal information such as credit card, checking account or Social Security numbers, refuse to make any commitment for donations, and to treat all calls from strangers with suspicion.

Chick said the LAPD has a special unit that assists seniors who are swindled, called the Gray Squad. It can be contacted at [phone].

``While these are simple points, they might help prevent some unsuspecting seniors from becoming a fraudulent telemarketer's holiday present,'' Chick said.