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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: "ali_ Adamu03" <ali_adamu03@hotmail.com>
Date: Sat, 28 May 2005 13:40:24 +0000
Subject: URGENT ASSISTANCE.

FROM THE DESK OF MR.Ali Adamu.
BILL AND EXHANGE UNIT
BANK OF AFRICAN(BOA)
OUAGADOUGOU-BURKINA FASO.

URGENT ASSISTANCE IN TRANSACTION

I am the manager at the bill and exchange department
bank of african(BOA) here in Ouagadougou,Burkina Faso.

In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of US$18.2m dollars ( US
dollars) in an account that belonging to one of our foreign customer.Who
died along with his entire family in Monday,31 July, 2000 in a plane crash
in paris.Please visit this site that is one of the
evidence the directors brought in other to swallow the
money at the end of the
day,http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/859479.stm"
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 guidlings 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 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 don't want this money to go into the bank treasury
as unclaimed bill.

The banking law and guidline here stipulates that if such money remained
unclaimed after seven years, the money will be transfered into the bank
treasury as unclaimed fund. The request of 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. I agree that 30% of
this money will be for you as a respect to the provision of a foriegn
account ,10% will be set aside for expenses incurred during the business and
60% would be for me Thereafter, I will visit your country for disbursement
according to the percentage indicated Therefore, to enable the immediate
transfer of this fund to your desiggnited bank account ,you must apply first
to the bank as a relation or next of kin of the deceased with a text of
application that i will send to you,so i will like you to send to me your
private telephone and faxnumber for easy and effective communication and
location where in 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 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 receive this
letter. Trusting to hear from you immediately.

Dear p/s reply this email thanks
Yours Faithfully,MR.Ali Adamu.(B.O.A)

_________________________________________________________________
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