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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.

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Fraud email example:

From: "madam_serena2 serena" <madam_serena2@hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, 29 Dec 2004 11:20:29 +0000
Subject: CONFIDENTIAL /URGENT REPLY NEEDED.

Dearest One


Although we have not met, I saw your contacts in INTERNET SEARCH,After much
consideration i decided to write you since I cannot be able to see you face
to face at first. I will like you to take your time to read this mail
carefully. I did not mean to embarrasse you with my business proposal but I
seriously need your assistance. Please this is a confidential matter and it
requires urgency.

I am Madam Serena Audu the manager of bill and exchange at the foreign
remittance department of The African Bank (TAB) ouagadougou burkina faso in
west africa.In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of U.S$12.5m
dollars (Twelve million five hundred thousand USD) in an account that
belongs to one of our foreign customer who died along with his entire
family in 11 SEP 2001 in a plane crash attack in (AMERICA).

Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his next of
kin to come over and claim his money because we cannot release it unless
some body applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as
indicated in our banking guidlines and laws, but unfortunately we learnt
that all his supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at
the( ATTACK) leaving
nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this , I now decided to
make this business proposal to you and release the money to you as the next
of kin or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent disbursement
since nobody is coming for it and I don't want this money to go into the
bank treasury as unclaimed bill.

The banking law and guidine here stipulates that if such money remained
unclaimed after three years, the money will be tranfered into the bank as
unclaimed bill


I therefore agree that 40% of this money will be for you as foreigner
partner, in respect to the provision of a foreign account, 10% will be set
aside for expenses incured during the business and 50% would be for me.

There after I will visit your country for disbursement according to the
percentages indicated.

Therefore, to enable the immediate transfer of this fund to you as
arranged, you must apply first to the bank as relation or next of kin to
the deceased indicating your bank name, your bank account number, your
private telephone and fax number for easy and effective communication and
location where in the money will be remitted.

I will not fail to bring to your notice that this transaction is hitch-free
and that you should not entertain any atom of fear as all required
arrangements have been made for the transfer. You should contact me
immediately as soon as you recieve this letter.

Trusting to hear from you immediately.


Yours faithfully,

Madam Serena Audu.
(Bill and Exchange Manager)

_________________________________________________________________
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