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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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

 

 

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: "elizabeth Ishaya" <elizabeth_aku@msn.com>
Reply-To: elizabethaku@aim.com
Date: Sun, 09 Oct 2005 21:27:42 +0000
Subject: urgent response

FROM: MRS. ELIZABETH ISHAYA AKU
15, ALLEN AVENUE
IKEJA, LAGOS
NIGERIA.
Email: elizabethaku@aim.com
Dear Sir,
This message to you is strictly confidential, with due respect. Sorry at
this perceived confusion or stress you may have receiving this letter from
me, since we have not known ourselves or met Previously. Despite that, I am
constrained to write you this letter because of the urgency it requires. As
a matter of fact, I got your contact from a reliable source believing you
will be of a great assistance to my kids and me. My decision to consult you
for a partnership business of mutual benefit is indeed personal. I am not in
doubt that you can be trusted in financial related matters of this
magnitude.

I am Mrs. Elizabeth Aku, the widow of the former Nigeria Youth and Sports
Minister late Mark Ishaya Aku who died in a plane crash on the 4th of april,
2002 My kids and I are trapped in an obnoxious custom And traditional rites
of my late husband's family. We have suffered maltreatment and untold
hardship in the hands of my late husbands family, simply because I am not
from the same tribe with my late husband. His brothers have taken all that I
suffered with my husband to acquire including treasure, houses and his bank
accounts closed by them. I wanted to escape to the United States of America
[USA} with my children on exile, but again they conspired and stole my
international passport and other traveling document to further frustrate me
Thank God, a week ago, I received an information via our family lawyer that
my late husband deposited the sum of U.S $25Million [Twenty five Million
United States Dollars] in cash with a security company in Amsterdam, hence
my late husband's brothers would not allow me to have any telephone contact
with anybody.

It has therefore, become very necessary and urgent to contact someone, a
foreigner like you who can travel to the offshore payment center on our
behalf to help me receive/secure these funds, while we find a way of getting
out of Nigeria to meet with you in your country.
I have had several discussions with our family lawyer who has express
willingness to help me with the necessary documents for the claim of the
funds from the Security company in Amsterdam should I get an honest,
competent and capable foreigner who will not cheat my kids and me or even
sit on the funds after claiming it, to stand on our behalf to claim the
funds. This is why I have contacted you to help save my children and I from
this obnoxious tax leveled on us by my late husband's brothers by claiming
these funds and investing it on our behalf. But you would need to give me
sufficient assurance that if you help me, you would not divert the funds.

My children and I have resolved to give you 20% of the total sum. This is
all what my children and I have got to live on. Please, I have reposed my
confidence and trust in you and hope you will not disappoint me, please see
the news on this websites to make you understand and believe me
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/1968300.stm you will contact my
lawyer hence he will be the one to deal with you on the transaction to avoid
suspicion from my late husband's brothers. I look forward to your urgent
response through my email as shown below. elizabethaku@aim.com
My attorney s name is Dr Thomas David, thomasdave55@aim.com He is
based in the U.K.I expect to hear from you so that I can give you more
details.

I await your response.

Best Regards

Mrs. Elizabeth Aku.


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