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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: "JOHN ABOH" <johaboh_n@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: johoah@yahoo.com
Date: Thu, 20 Oct 2005 03:09:04 +0000
Subject: MAKE USE OF THIS OPPORTUNITY

Dear Friend,

Reports of fraud,Negligence, Errors and others
by Foreigners about our country; Nigeria has
prompted the Federal Government to empower
only our Bank; First Bank of Nigeria, PLC to
find lasting solutions to these problems. The Files
and all Documents relating to Foreign-Affairs has
been handed over to our Bank. This letter is
written to you in order to correct and ameliorate
certain problems that have arised as a result of
Frauds,Negligence, Errors in the past.

You are among the beneficiaries we have so
far discovered by record and only your e-mail
address is the only contact information we could
retrieve for now from the past records of
Stake-Holders who have not been cleared for
one payments or the other and the Bank is ready to
Transfer the money/fund to any country of your
choice when you have replied this mail.

I am Mr. John Aboh the Director, International
Remittance Department of this Bank
(First Bank of Nigeria PLC), my Boss,Mr. Jacobs
M. Ajekigbe, the Managing Director/CEO of this
bank is now on compulsary leave and all power
have been vested on me to make all international
payments.

Also, due to reported cases of corrupt practices
in other Nigeria Banks including the Central Bank
of Nigeria, the Federal Government has
revocked/cancelled all power vested on those
banks and have appointed our bank
(First Bank of Nigeria) to make all foreign
payments.

Your fund has been in this bank for many
years unclaimed because my boss Mr. Jacobs
Ajekigbe have refused to tell you the truth on
how to claim your fund this is because he has
been using the interest accumulated from your
fund every year to enrich himself without your
knowledge.

I want to help you pull out this fund to your
bank account using the easiest and the quickest
method, which have not been made known to
you before. By this method, you will open a
domiciliary account with this bank (First Bank
of Nigeria), your fund would be lodged into
this dociliary account and your fund
will be paid in directly to any bank of
your choice.

After the transfer, you will confirm the
fund in your bank account within
5-hours same day. No Cost of Transfer
(COT) and no stoppage from any Government
departments as the transfer will be done within the
bank alone and it is very safe.

The method which was introduced to you
before is the Telegraphic Transfer(TT) for
which confirmation was 48hrs, because of
the time factor, petitions could come from
various organizations stopping your
payment and asking you to pay huge fee
which would be difficult for you to pay so
that they can benefit from the huge interest your
fund generates while still in the Bank.

This method is not safe for you because it is
not done within the bank alone as information
of the payment would be sent to the Central
Control Unit(CCU) of the Federal Ministry
of Finance and office of the
Accountant General of the Federation.

As a Man of dignity, I have nothing to gain
by keeping your fund, I want to assist you
receive your fund before my boss rsumes office.
You have to follow up and work with me now,
so keep this very confidential because of
fraudsters and impostors who go about
presenting various bank accounts in
order to divert another beneficiary's fund.

Confirm to me through this e-mail address:
johnoabohfbn@box.az ,your present/valid
account co-ordinates and amount to be claimed
so that I do not transfer your fund to the wrong
Bank Account.

Awaiting your quick response.

Yours truly,
MR. JOHN O. ABOH


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