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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: "Mark Jones" <markjones_contact@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: markjonescontact12@yahoo.com
Date: Thu, 01 Sep 2005 03:18:42 +0000
Subject: Pls Respond.

Dear friend,

I am sorry for the inconvinence this email will give you but will appreciate
if you can make out time to go through my message.I am Mr Mark Jones a
banker and auditor by profession,I have been working in this part of the
world as stated below for several years,I am also the personal banking
officer to a national of your country, who was formally a director with Kobe
Steel Corporation company,a Japaneese company that constructed the
Liquidified Natural Gas Company in Eleme - River state Nigeria. My
client,his wife and two children were involved in a motor accident along
Sagbama express road Port Harcourt Rivers State Nigeria and unfornately the
family died in the accident.Prior to his death, my client deposited $5.5
million(Five million ,five hundred thousand united states dollars) with my
bank in his domicilary account.

Ever since his death with his family and up till this time of writing,no
next-of-kin or Relation of his has come forward to claim his money with us
since that time. No other person knows about this account or any thing
concerning it, the account has no other beneficiary and my investigation
proved to me as well that the account is a secret account because we have
signed a non-disclosure agreement with the bank at that time and his company
was not aware of the deposited fund.I am revealing this to you with believe
that you will not let me down
in this business.

The request for you as beneficiary in this business is occasioned by the
fact that the ustomer/depositor was a foreigner and not from Nigeria as I
cannot stand as next of kin to him, Hence, I plead for your assistance with
the intention of getting this unclaimed money amounting to $5.5
million(Five million, five hundred thousand united states dollars)
transferred into your company/private bank account that you will present. I
will not contact any other company or person until I am convinced that you
are not interested in this proposal.

We can get the fund from my bank if you are ready to work with me without
any hitches, I will use your name to get the probate documents at the
federal high court presenting you as the next of kin to the late customer
since I have his death certificate with me. I believe this is a priviaged
information which I expect you to keep confidential because of my
proffession. The buisness will not take us time since all we need is to get
the probate from the court which I will send to you to enable you fax them
back to my bank to inform them that you are the next of kin to my client and
beneficiary of the deposit. Other clearance papers will also be processed to
exonorate the funds from illicit proceeds.

I am willing to go into equal partnership with you, if you agree to stand in
as proxy. I will provide you with full working details if you have a genuine
interest, send me your complete mailing address as I will need it for the
probate. I will also need your direct tel/fax numbers as I will like a
faster communication medium. Kindly copy a response to my private email
address:markjo@myway.com or call me
through my direct telephone number below.

Yours truly
Mark Jones



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