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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.

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

Fraud email example:

From: "Williams Mandela" <attorneywills02@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: willydonald@excite.com
Date: Thu, 14 Sep 2006 10:31:26 +0000
Subject: From Mr Donald M.Williams

Good day,

I am Mr.Donald williams, a manager in the Bills and Exchange at the Foreign
Remittance Department of one of the leading banks here in Ghana. I am
writing this letter to ask for your support and cooperation to carry out
this business opportunity in my department.

We discovered an abandoned sum of$12,500,000.00 (Twelve Million Five Hundred
Thousand United States Dollars only) in an account that belongs to one of
our foreign customers who died along with his entire family,wife and two
children aboard on Flight AF4590 which crashed shortly after take off from
Charles De Gaulle airport, outside Paris, at about 4:44 p.m. local time July
25,2000,10.44 a.m.
Eastern.http://www.aeronautics.ru/nws002/reuters044b.htm.He was an investor
in oil and gas industry here in Ghana and the CEO of SUN Properties.Since we
heard of his death,We have been expecting his next-of-kin to come over and
put claims for his money because we cannot release the fund from his account
unless someone applies for claim as the next-of-kin to the deceased as
indicated in our banking guidelines.Unfortunately,neither their family
member nor distant relative has ever appeared to claim the said fund.

It is in our banking guideline that if none of the relatives come up to
claim this fund after 6years of the death of the late customer,the fund will
be regarded as an unclaimed bill and will be transferred to the bank's
treasury account.Upon this discovery, I and other officials in my department
have agreed to make business with you and release the total amount into your
account as the heir of the fund since no one came for it or discovered he
maintained account with our bank,otherwise the fund will be returned to the
banks treasury as unclaimed fund.

We have agreed that our ratio of sharing will be negotiated on your
aggreement to assist as our foreign partner but most importantly 5 % of the
entire funds will be set aside for the settlement of all local and foreign
expences incurred by us and you during the course of this business.Upon the
successful completion of this transfer, I and one of my colleagues will come
to your country and mind our share. It is from our share we intend to import
Agricultural Machineries into my country as a way of recycling the fund.

To commence this transaction,we require you to immediately indicate your
interest by a return e-mail via my private email<willydonald@excite.com>
with the following information:

1)Your private telephone and fax number
2.Your full name

Upon the receipt of this,i will inturn get back to you and give you the
mordalities for the bank to approve you as the next of kin.This transaction
is risk free but always keep it secret,and if you can not handle it,please
delete it after reading.

Best Regards.

Mr Donald Williams

_________________________________________________________________
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