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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: "Christopher kuruneri" <kuru_2010@hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2006 00:23:45 +0200
Subject: INVESTMENT ASSISTANCE

From: Mr. kharbo Christopher kuruneri

No. 274 Wlmer Street Summer-strand
(6001) Port Elizabeth
(South Africa)

E-Mail: chris.kuru@webmail.co.za

BUSINESS/INVESTMENT ASSISTANCE

Dear Sir/Madam

Indeed, I sincerely apologize for the embarrassment this might cause you.
However,
I wish to state, that it is sincerely necessitated by my present plight
and I pray you will readily be of tremendous assistance. I am Mr. kharbo
Christopher kuruneri, from Zimbabwe and the son of Mr. kuruneri Christopher
who until recently was the Honorable Minister Of Finance in the present
Robert Mugabe Government in Zimbabwe. Precisely, on The 24th of April 2004,
the security goons of President Robert Mugabe in what was an excessive and
unprecedented use of force arrested my father while still a Government
Minister at our family house in Harare.

He was arrested on the allegation that his building of a Thirty Million Rand
(i.e. USD$ 30 Million) beach front mansion in Llandudno, Cape Town, South
Africa was in contravention of Zimbabwe’s regulation on Foreign exchange
control. Though, my father has repeatedly made it clear that he did not in
anyway contravene this regulation, maintaining, that he was funding the
housing project from funds he made through his business ventures and
consultancies work outside Zimbabwe prior to his becoming a minister, and
that the funds were never held nor transferred from Zimbabwean banks,
charges, are yet to be laid against him in a court of law, my father has
been held in solitary confinement and under severe inhuman conditions.

However, my family is undoubtedly aware of the underlying political
intrigue and vendetta that is involved in this case than meets the eyes. It
simply has to do with my fathers uncompromising stance against the
oppressive polices and unwholesome activities of President Robert Mugabe,
besides, my father’s recent rising popularity within the ruling ZANU-PF
party, and around the country and his touting as a possible successor to
President Robert Mugabe. Being aware of Robert Mugabe’s antecedents, to say,
that my father and the entire family entertain great concern and
apprehension about his life and that of the other members of our family, is
to state the obvious. It is obvious from his actions; President Robert
Mugabe is out destroying the family political, financial and otherwise.
Presently, I have moved with the rest of my family into South Africa, where
we have managed to gain asylum.

However, the tactic support for President Mugabe from the present South
African Government, coupled with the proximity of both countries makes our
continued stay and hope for a future in South Africa most risky and
uncomfortable. In the meantime, I have been mandated by my father, to
explore avenues and make every necessary arrangements immediately to move
our only left fund, since others has been seized, out of this country and
also make arrangements to resettle the rest of my family in any of such
country. At present, I am desperately seeking your assistance in helping me
to move-out the sum of Fifteen million five hundred thousand united dollars
(USD$ 15.5m) being the total sum deposited with a security and finance
company here in Port Elizabeth South Africa to your country for viable
investment. Unfortunately, under the recent South African Financial
intelligence center Act (FICA) and the Exchange Control Regulations as a
refugee I am highly constrained from personally transferring this money out
of South Africa.

However, this could easily be effected with the representation/assistance
by a nationals of a different country apart from nationals of the Southern
African development countries (SADC) hence my writing. For your assistance
towards the successfully completion of this transaction, you will be
entitled to 15% of the total sum involved and the remaining will be for our
investment purposes. Please then, could you be of any assistance in lieu of
this transaction, I kindly request that you contact me as soon as possible
through the telephone/fax numbers and address above for further discussion.
However, against the backdrop of my safety and that of my entire family, I
hope you appreciate more than ever the essence for the confidentiality of
this.

I have attached at the end of this mail, some media reports concerning this
present predicament of my family to aid you with further insight:

http://www.newzimbabwe.com/pages/kuru.1566.html
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/pages/kuru3.1599.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml? Xml=/news/2004/04/26/wzim26.xml
http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/Zimbabwe/0,,2-11-259_1518150,00.html

Do accept my highest considerations. I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards,

Mr. kharbo Christopher kuruneri

_________________________________________________________________
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