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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.

Victims never receive this non-existent fortune but are tricked into sending their money to the criminals, who remain anonymous. They hide their real identity and location by using fake names and fake postal addresses as well as communicating via anonymous free email accounts and mobile phones.

Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!

Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

 

 

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: "Professor BRUCE Obi" <brucev_smith@msn.com>
Reply-To: fobi2007@yahoo.com
Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2006 22:20:52 +0000
Subject: Professor BRUCE Obi

Professor BRUCE Obi
Bank Of The North,
Victoria Island Branch,
Lagos, Nigeria.


ATTN: MD/CEO

I am Professor BRUCE Obi, Branch Manager with Bank ofthe North, Victoria
Island Branch, Lagos, Nigeria. I have an urgent and very profitable
businessproposition for you that should be handled with
extreme confidentiality. On January 6,1998 a Foreign Oil Consultant and
contractor with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Mr. James
Herbert by name made a numbered time Fixed Deposit for twelve calendar
months valued at US$38.6M (Thirty Eight Million, Six Hundred United States
Dollars Only) in my branch.

Upon maturity I sent a routine notification inaccordance with the Bank
policy to his forwarding
address but got no reply.After a month we sent a reminder and finally we
discovered from his
contract employers the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) that
Mr. James
Herbert died from an automobile accident.

On further investigation, we found out that he died without making a Will
and all attempts to trace his next of kin was fruitless. I therefore made
further investigations and discovered that Mr. James Herbert did not declare
any next of kin or relations in all his official documents including his
Bank Deposit paperwork in my Bank. This sum of US$38.6M has been carefully
moved out of my bank to a Security Company in Europe for safekeeping.

No one will ever come forward to claim it and according to Nigerian Law, at
the expiration of 5 years the money will revert to the ownership of the
Nigerian Government if nobody applies to claim the fund. This prompted us to
contact you.We will like to front you as the next of kin of our late client
thereby making you the legal beneficiary of the sum of $38.6 million U.S
Dollars that is presently in a Security Company in Europe.

I contacted you because it is against our code of ethics to own and operate
foreign accounts and your assistance would be needed to claim the money in
the Security Company in Europe.
We have unanimously agreed that 25% of the entire sum would be for you if
you agree to take part in this profitable transaction,70% for me and 2 of my
colleagues while the remaining 5% would be used to pay back the expenses
that may be incurred during the course of the transaction by both parties
after the fund has been claimed and lodged in your account. In the event
that you are genuinely interested in the transaction,the following
information would be needed from you to expedite action.

1) Your Full Name and Address that would be used to establish you as the
next of kin of our late client thereby making you the legal beneficiary of
the fund. This would ensure that the Security Company in Europe releases the
Consignment/Fund to you.

2) Your Private Mobile,Telphone and Fax numbers where you can be reached at
all time because this transaction entails constant communication.
The transaction is 100% risk free as all modalities has been perfected to
ensure the hitch free success of the transaction.

If you are interested, send the requested information via email and fax to
the fax number stated below so that we can proceed and after sending it you
call me.

I await your response urgently.

Regards,

Professor BRUCE Obi


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