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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: ahmed azim <ahmedazim44@virgilio.it>
Reply-To: ahmedazim44@mail.com
Date: Wed, 09 Aug 2006 19:18:25 +0200
Subject: Attention.


Dear Friend.
Assalamu Alaikum, may Allah bless us in the name of
Allah Almighty the merciful. My name is Ahmad Azim, I
am a crude oil marketer in Baghdad, Iraq. During the
war led by the U.S. and coalition forces, my home,
investment and properties were bombed down. I lost my
wife and two children in the bomb blast and I escaped
death but sustained a very serious internal injury
that leads me to have been diagnosed with esophageal
cancer. It has defiled all forms of medical treatment,
and right now I have only about a few months to live,
according to medical experts.
I have not particularly lived my life so well, as I
never really cared for anyone (not even myself) but my
business. Though I am very rich, I was never generous,
I was always hostile to people because of my closeness
to Saddam Hussein first son Uday Hussein and only
focused on my business as that was the only thing I
cared for. But now I regret al l this as I now know
that there is more to life than just wanting to have
or make all the money in the world. Now that Allah has
called me, I want Allah to be merciful to me and
accept my soul, I have decided to give alms to charity
organizations, as I want this to be one of the last
good deeds I do on earth.
I need help from a reliable and honest person I can
trust in the name of Allah the merciful. Considering
my present predicament and the political situation in
Iraq, I now seek your assistance to help me clear
Twenty-Eight million US-Dollars (US$28,000,000.00)
that I have with a recognize bank in Europe and I will
want you to help me collect this deposited fund and
dispatched it to charity organizations as i will
instruct you to do.
I don’t need any telephone communication in this
regards because of my health, the present situation in
Iraq and some of my relatives around me. I don’t want
them to know abo ut this new development and with Allah
the merciful, all things are possible. As soon as I
receive your reply I shall give you the contact of my
lawyer in Europe and i will also issue you a letter of
authority through my lawyer that will prove you as the
next of kin to this fund base on my instructions. I
want you to always pray for me and I have set aside
15% for you for your time and patience. Please send a
reply through my below email address with your full
contact information for more private and confidential
communication and note that any delay in your reply
will give me room in searching for another person for
this same purpose because you are the only person i
have contacted for now. Please assure me that you will
act accordingly as i will instruct you to do.
Insya Allah,
Ahmed Azim.
ahmedazim44@mail.com

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