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: holya@handbag.com
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 17:11:14 +0200
Subject: RE:ASSISTANCE

Dear friend,

Greetings to you and your family! This mail might come to you as a surprise
and the temptation to ignore it as unserious could come into your mind; but
please consider it a divine wish and accept it with a deep sense of humility.
My name is Luis Jose Fernadez. I am a 64 years old man, I am Cuban currently
residing in Dubai (United Arab Emirate). I was formerly living in Cuba and
served under Castro`s government but had to run into self exile after the
ruling Government of Fidel Castro closed in on my family on accusations of
anti-government statements, I was once married with two children but my family
could not escape before the deadly hands of Castro`s goons fell on them.
l did made a lot of money serving Castro and on getting to UAE, I have been
a merchant here in Dubai dealing in Ornamentals, Oriental Carpets and Artifacts
and life was very smooth for me until about three(3) years ago when I was
first diagnosed of Cancer of the Larynx.
Before this happened my business and concern for making money was all I lived
for, I never really cared about other values in life. But since the loss
of my family and hometown, I have found a new desire to assist helpless families.
I have been helping orphans in orphanage/motherless homes. I have once donated
some money to orphans in war ravaged Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan and some East
European Countries. Before I became ill, I kept $ 4.5 Million in a long-term
deposit vault of a security/finance company and I didn`t state any next of
kin when the money was deposited and if I died without stating any the money
will automatically go into the coffers of the security company and I don`t
want this to happen. I have left the hospital and presently receiving treatment
in an acupuncture clinic, I have been undergoing treatment for Oesophageal
Cancer at the hospital. I have since lost my ability to talk and my doctors
have told me that I have only a few months to live. It is my last wish to
see this money distributed to charity organizations.
Because relatives and friends have plundered so much of my wealth since my
illness, I cannot live with the agony of entrusting this huge responsibility
to any of them. Please, I beg you in the name of God to help me collect the
deposit and distribute it amongst charity organizations. Use your judgement
to distribute the money and feel free to reimburse yourself when you have
the money for any cost you incur during the process of collecting and distributing
the money to charity organizations. I am going to send you vital documents
to back my claims and I am willing to offer you a reward If you are willing
to help, please reply as soon as you can on my alternate email address: holycooldub@netscape.net,i
Look forward to hearing from you soonest.

Regards,
Luis Jose Fernadez



___________________________________________________________

Book yourself something to look forward to in 2005.
Cheap flights - http://www.tiscali.co.uk/travel/flights/
Bargain holidays - http://www.tiscali.co.uk/travel/holidays/





___________________________________________________________

Book yourself something to look forward to in 2005.
Cheap flights - http://www.tiscali.co.uk/travel/flights/
Bargain holidays - http://www.tiscali.co.uk/travel/holidays/




Anti-fraud resources: