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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.
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: "Peter Wangqin" <peterw@peterwangqin.com>
Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 03:44:22 +0000
Subject: BENEFIT
Qin Wang
Lloyds TSB Pacific Limited
Hong Kong Branch
Fax:852-301-59741
Thank you for giving me your time. Please be patient and read my email to
you.
I am a staff of Lloyds TSB Group attached in private Banking Services. I am
contacting you concerning a customer and, an investment placed under our
banks management 3 years ago, I contacted you independently of our
investigation and no one is informed of this communication and I would like
to intimate you with certain facts that I believe would be of interest to
you.
In 2000, the subject matter; ref: bb/tsb/bank/73 came to our bank to engage
in business discussions with our Private Banking Services Department. He
informed us that he had a financial portfolio of 8.35 million United States
Dollars, which he wished to have us turn over on his behalf. I was the
officer assigned to his case; I made numerous suggestions in line with my
duties as the de-facto chief operations officer of the Private Banking
Services Department, especially given the volume of funds he wished to put
into our bank. We met on numerous occasions prior to any investments being
placed. I encouraged him to consider various growth funds with prime
ratings. The favoured route in my advice to customers is to start by
assessing data on 600 traditional stocks and bond managers and alternative
investments. Based on my advice, we spun the money around various
opportunities and made attractive margins for our first months of operation,
the accrued profit and interest stood at this point at over 10 million
United States Dollars, this margin was not the full potential of the fund
but he desired low risk guaranteed returns on investments.
In mid 2001, he asked that the money be liquidated because he needed to make
an urgent investment requiring cash payments in Europe. He directed that I
liquidate the funds and had it deposited with a firm in Europe. I informed
him that our bank would have to make special arrangements to have this done
and in order not to circumvent due process, the bank would have to make a
9.5 % deduction from the funds to cater for banking and statutory charges.
He complained about the charges but later came around when I explained to
him the complexities of the task he was asking of us. Cash movement across
borders has become especially strict since the incidents of 9/11.
I contacted my affiliate in Europe and had the funds available in main land
Europe. I undertook all the processes and made sure I followed his precise
instructions to the letter and had the funds deposited in a security
consultancy firm, the firm is a specialist private firm that accepts
deposits from high net worth individuals and blue chip corporations that
handle valuable products or undertake transactions that need immediate
access to cash. This small and highly private organization is familiar
especially to the highly placed and well-connected organizations. In line
with instructions, the money was deposited. He told me he wanted the money
there in anticipation of his arrival from Norway later that week. This was
the last communication we had, this transpired around 25th February 2002. In
June last year, we got a call from the security firm informing us of the
inactivity of that particular portfolio. This was an astounding position as
far as I was concerned, given the fact that I managed the private banking
sector I was the only one who knew about the deposit, and I could not
understand why he had not come forward to claim his deposit. I made futile
efforts to locate him I immediately passed the task of locating him to the
internal investigations department of our bank. Four days later, information
started to trickle in, that he was apparently dead.
A person who suited his description was declared dead of a heart attack in
Cannes, South of France. We were soon enough able to identify the body and
cause of death was confirmed. The bank immediately launched an investigation
into possible surviving next of kin to alert about the situation and also to
come forward to claim his estate. If you are familiar with private banking
affairs, those who patronize our services usually prefer anonymity, but also
some levels of detachment from conventional processes. In his bio-data form,
he listed no next of kin. In the field of private banking, opening an
account with us means no one will know of its existence, accounts are rarely
held under a name; depositors use numbers and codes to make the accounts
anonymous. This bank also gives the choice to depositors of having their
mail sent to them or held at the bank itself, ensuring that there are no
traces of the account and as I said, rarely do they nominate next of kin.
Private banking clients apart from not nominating next of kin also usually
in most cases leave wills in our care, in this case; he died in testate.
What I wish to relate to you will smack of unethical practice but I want you
to understand something. It is only an outsider to the banking world who
finds the internal politics of the banking world aberrational. The world of
private banking especially is fraught with huge rewards for those who occupy
certain offices and oversee certain portfolios. You should have begun by now
to put together the general direction of what I propose. There is US$
8,370,000.00 deposited, I alone have the deposit details and they will
release the deposit to no one unless I instruct them to do so. I alone know
of the existence of this deposit for as far as the finance firm, the
transaction with our deceased customer concluded when I sent the funds to
the firm, all outstanding interactions in relation to the file are just
customer services and due process. The finance firm has no single idea of
what's the history or nature of the deposit. They are simply awaiting
instructions to release the deposit to any party that comes forward. This is
the situation. This bank has spent great amounts of money trying to track
this man's family; they have investigated for months and have found no
family. The investigation has come to an end. My proposal; you share similar
details to the late fellow; I am prepared to place you in a position to
instruct the finance firm to release the deposit to you as the closest
surviving relation. Upon receipt of the deposit, I am prepared to share the
money with you in half and no more. That is: I will simply nominate you as
the next of kin and have them release the deposit to you. We share the
proceeds 50/50.
I would have gone ahead to ask the funds be released to me, but that would
have drawn a straight line to me and my involvement in claiming the deposit.
But on the other hand, you with a similar name as the original depositor
would easily pass as the beneficiary with the rights to claim. I assure you
that I could have the deposit released to you in a few days. I will simply
inform our bank of the final closing of the file relating to the customer. I
will then officially communicate with the finance company and instruct them
to release the deposit to you. With these two things: all is done. The
alternative would be for us to have the firm direct the funds to another
bank with you as account holder. This way there will be no need for you to
think of receiving the money from the firm. We can fine-tune this based on
our interactions. I am aware of the consequences of this proposal. I ask
that if you find no interest in this project that you should discard this
mail. I ask that you do not be vindictive or destructive. If my offer is of
no appeal to you, delete this message and forget I ever contacted you.
Do not destroy my career because you do not approve of my proposal. You may
not know this but people like myself who have made tidy sums out of
comparable situations run the whole private banking sector. I am not a
criminal and what I do; I do not find against good conscience, this may be
hard for you to understand, but the dynamics of my industry dictates that I
make this move. Such opportunities only come ones' way once in a lifetime. I
cannot let this chance pass me by I hope you understand because for once I
found myself in total control and face to face with my destiny. These
chances won't pass me by. I ask that you do not destroy my chance, if you
will not work with me let me know and let me move on with my life but do not
destroy me. I am a family man and this is an opportunity to provide them
with new opportunities. There is a reward for this project and it is a task
well worth undertaking. I have evaluated the risks and the only risk I have
here is from you refusing to work with me and alerting my bank. I am the
only one who knows of this situation, good fortune has blessed you with a
name that has planted you into the center of relevance in my life. Let's
share the blessing.
If you give me positive signals, I will initiate this process towards a
conclusion. I wish to inform you that should you contact me via official
channels; I will deny knowing you and about this project. I repeat, I do not
want you contacting me through my official phone lines nor do I want you
contacting me through my official email account. Contact me only through
this email address. I do not want any direct link between you and me. My
official lines are not secure lines as they are periodically monitored to
assess our level of customer care in line with our Total Quality Management
Policy.
Please observe this instruction religiously. Please, again, note I am a
family man; I happily married with two kids. I send you this mail not
without a measure of fear as to what the consequences might be, but I know
within me that nothing ventured is nothing gained and that success and
riches never come easy or on a platter of gold. This is the one truth I have
learned from my private banking clients. Do not betray my confidence. If we
can be of one accord, we should plan a meeting, soon.
I await your response.
Sincerely,
Qin Wang
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