Long Island woman has same license plate number as an NYPD car. Then the E-ZPass bills came.

A Long Island grandmother has a license plate that somehow matches the numbers as an NYPD patrol car. 

The Bay Shore woman says she's being billed and penalized for tolls and late payments that are not hers. 

"The problem is the license plate number," Joan Schuck said. 

Six months ago, the disabled retiree on a fixed income started noticing E-ZPass bills for bridges and tolls that were not hers. 

"The only place I go is to the grocery store, the doctors, and the neighborhood," Shuck said. 

Shuck started calling E-ZPass. Her gray Hyundai is not a white Ford police car that the E-ZPass bills depict. 

Her car's plate and the NYPD car's plate match, except the NYPD's last two digits - 12 - identifies the patrol car number. 

Schuck got a positive response from the MTA, saying they reimbursed her for all of the disputed charges.

Since March, though, Shuck says she's been getting threatening notices. 

"They want me to pay $190. It's gone to collections," she said. 

Shuck said she's worried about driving to visit her sister, who lives upstate. She's concerned about getting pulled over, having her registration suspended, and even having her car seized. 

"This is now going to impact my credit score," she said. "Every single one of these [charges], none of these were mine." 

Last December, CBS News New York brought you the story of another Long Island retiree who was being erroneously billed for novelty Star Trek license plates that once matched hers. It was finally resolved. 

Shuck says she's trying to remain hopeful. 

"I'm not a police officer. I don't have a police car," Shuck said. 

She wishes she did, though. 

"So I wouldn't have to sit in traffic or pay tolls," she joked. 

But the humor only goes so far. 

"I have cried, to be honest with you. I have gotten off the phone and just sat there and cried," Shuck said. 

After CBS News New York reached out, the MTA responded. They have now flagged her plate number to block any charges that are not hers. 

"Given that two vehicles, one owned by a Long Islander and another by the NYPD, appear to have identical license plate numbers, some trips taken by the police car were inadvertently invoiced to the Long Island E-ZPass account, and those charges have all been reversed. In addition, an alert was placed in the tolling system to prevent future confusion from this isolated situation, as we work with the parties involved to resolve any remaining issues," MTA Bridges and Tunnels President Catherine Sheridan said in a statement.