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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

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

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "a security company " (this will cost you money - that's what the scam is about)
  • "is 100% risk free" (almost true for the criminal - arrests of online criminals are rare)
  • "sani abacha" (the name of a person or institution often appearing in 419 scams)
  • "lagos" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
  • williamdurusnr@yahoo.com

Fraud email example:

From: "Duru William" <williamduru3310@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: williamduru2@o2.pl
Date: Mon, 26 Dec 2005 18:12:22 -0600
Subject: Merry Xmas and Happy New Year

CHALLENGE SECURITIES AND FINANCE LTD
4A, LOBI STREET,
LAGOS, NIGERIA.
e-mail: williamduru2@o2.pl, williamdurusnr@yahoo.com




Dear Sir,
I am Mr. William Duru, the Director of Operations Chanllenge Security and
Finance Ltd, Lagos Nigeria. Here in Nigeria our firm is a security company
of high repute with years of outstanding service to the people of Africa.

I have resolved to contact you through this medium based on business
proposal that will be of mutual benefit to both of us. I got your
particulars through a consultant company base on my research for a
trustworthy and established person that understands investment ethic for
entering into a life time profitable joint partnership investment and also
co-operation with confidence and trust that you will keep the contents
secret and divulged to any third party.

To be explicit and straight to the point. Some time early 2000, a reputable
client of ours deposited a consignment in our company\'s vault for safe
keeping. And since then our client has failed to come forward to claim his
consignment, which has accumulated a considerable amount of money in
demurrage.

Consequently, in our bide to contact this client to redeem the demurrage
which his consignment had accumulated we discovered that our client was the
former Nigeria youth and sports minister Late Mr. Mark Ishaya Aku who died
in a plane crash on the 4th of April, 2002. Find more details in the BBC
NEWS about the plane cash
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/1968300.stm} none of his
benefactors has come forward to claim the consignment with us, which means
that none of his relatives or aids had any knowledge of this consignment.
Hence out of curiosity I decided to secretly open the two boxes that our
client deposited in our vault.

And to my surprise I discovered that the two boxes that were registered as
treasurer by our client actually contained a considerable amount of money in
United States Dollars amounting to about US$21 million Dollar. Since this
development I have been nursing plans secretly. I also found out from
enquiries and the foreign media that our late client siphoned a lot of money
from his position as the youth and sports minister the while he was in
office, because he worked under the late Sani Abacha former military
president of Nigeria and the most corrupt governments in the world.

It is my conviction that the consignment in our vault was part of the money
that our client siphoned and now that he is dead there is no race to this
money in our care. I am now soliciting your noble assistance to assist me in
transferring this money out of Nigeria to your country for immediate
investment with your assistance.

I have also decided that you will generously be entitled to 30% of the total
amount. Upon my receipt of your reply confirming your willingness to assist
me of this transaction, I will immediately arrange and transfer all the
rights of ownership of this consignment to your name to facilitate your easy
clearance and transfer of the complete funds to your country. You have
nothing to worry about, as I will be there to assist you in anyway necessary
with all proper documentation.

This transaction is 100% risk free. Please maintain absolute confidentiality
on this matter. Please reply to the above email address with your telephone
and fax so we can communicate you.



Thanks.
Yours faithfully.
Mr. William Duru.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam