joewein.net   joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days
  jwSpamSpy

Home
About Us
Spam
419/Nigeria
Fraud
Contact

"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.

 

 

Fraud email example:

From: "MR.HENRI ASUQUO" <henri_asuquo550@yahoo.com> (may be fake)
Date: Wed, 12 Jan 2005 21:18:31 +0000
Subject: Please I need your urgent Response

FROM THE DESK OF MR.HENRI ASUQUO
BILL AND EXCHANGE MANAGER,
FOREIGN REMITTANCE DEPT.
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK
OUAGADOUGOU, BURKINA FASO.
TEL.00226 78 84 98 44

Dear Friend,
I am the manager of bill and exchange at the foreign remittance department of the above stated bank.
In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of $22.3m. US
Dollars(twenty two million, three hundred thousand US dollars)in an account that belongs to one of our foreign customer who died along with his entire family in Novbember 17, 1999 in a plane crash.
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 somebody applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as indicated in our banking guidelines and laws but unfortunately we learnt that all his supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at the plane crash leaving nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this discovery that I and other officials in my department 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 we do not want this money to go into the banks
treasury as unclaimed bill.
The banking law and guideline here stipulates that if such money
remains unclaimed after four years, the money will be transfered into the bank treasury as unclaimed fund. The request of a foreigner as next of kin in this business is occassioned by the fact that the customer was a foreigner and a Burkinabe cannot stand as next of kin to a foreigner.
We agree that 20% of this money will be for you as a foreign partner,
in respect to the provision of a foreign account, 5% will be for expenses incured during the business and 75% would be for me and my colleagues.
Thereafter I and my colleagues will visit your country for disburesment
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 of the deceased indicating your :-
* Bank name
* Bank account number
* Private telephone and fax no.
for easy and effective communication and location wherein the money
will be remitted.
Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or email the text
of the application. 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 arrangement have been made for the transfer.
You should contact me immediately you recieve this letter.

Yours faithfully,

Mr.Henri Asuquo.
Bill & Exchange Manager.


Anti-fraud resources: