A scammer has created a fake MTA Lost and Found website that charges riders who forget items on trains, subways and buses almost $50 to get their lost stuff back, The Post has learned.

The creator of the phony site has paid Google to have an ad appear at the top of the search list when people search for terms like “MTA” and “lost and found.”

The site charges people looking for their lost stuff a whopping $48.95, but isn’t affiliated with the MTA at all.

Dave Smith, 55, of Westport said he was almost scammed while trying to put in a claim for a 3-D printed fantasy football helmet he recently left on the train.

Smith said he initially went to Grand Central to the lost and found, but was told he had to file a claim online first.

When he Googled “Metro-North” and “lost and found,” he went to the bogus site.

“I thought it was unbelievable that Metro-North is charging me $50,” he said. “I was pretty upset about the whole thing. I thought it was a Metro-North site. I thought their new policy was you have to pay 50 bucks. It’s a scam.”

Metro-North spokesman Aaron Donovan said the MTA has notified Google and asked them to take appropriate action on the site.

The MTA police are investigating who created the site, as well as the MTA inspector general.

“Anyone looking to submit a claim for lost property needs to go through the MTA’s official website,” said MTA Police Chief Michael Coan. “There is no charge to submit a claim to any of the MTA’s Lost and Found units.”

The site also has a section for airport and taxi passengers to look for lost items. The Port Authority and Taxi and Limousine Commission have been notified about it.

This is the real MTA website.

Jim Cameron, head of the Commuter Action Group, blasted the fake site.

“It’s a shame that commuters have to play ‘caveat emptor’ with something as simple as lost and found,” he said. “Metro-North runs a great free service, so it’s a shame that a web search first leads to a paying alternative.”