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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 Bannister <sirjohnbannister2@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: <sirjohnbannister@yahoo.com>
Date: Wed, 27 Jun 2007 19:09:36 -0400
Subject: PLEASE RESPOND TIMELY ENOUGH.



From the Desk of: Sir J.C.C. Bannister. Contact Tel : +44-703-191-0353; Contact Fax : +44-870-479-3980.Direct Mail: sirjohnbannister@yahoo.comDear Friend,I hope my e-mail meets you well as we have actually been searching forany possible link or semblance with an individual that shares the samelast name as one of our late clients.My name is JOHN BANNISTER, and I am the managing director / chiefexecutive officer of the H.S.B.C Private Banking Unit, a private investmentarm of H.S.B.C Bank Plc here in the United Kingdom. During the yearlypreliminary in-house auditing of accounts, I discovered that a US$domiciliary check-in account opened in October 1998 has been dormant sincethe January 2001. The total amount in this account is US$18.45MillionUnited State Dollars cash call time deposit without accrued interests.Working together with the audit manager, we decided to investigate thisaccount for more information. We discovered that the owner of thisaccount, a foreigner & contractor with the Transport Department, who sharesthe same last name as you, died in the year 2000,leaving no heirs ornext of kin whatsoever.Presently, we are only two people in our organization with access tothis information and we have decided to keep it that way and claim themoney for ourselves using a third party who we will present as the nextof kin to the deceased (Names Withheld). We will supply the necessaryinformation on the deceased and ensure that the claim application isgiven immediate approval. Documents like the death certificate and theNext-Of-Kin Bio data form will be arranged by us and forwarded to you foronward submission to the bank in order for you to officially file forthese funds under the auspices of an inheritance claim.The project is risk-free, as we will use contacts that hold strategicpositions in the bank to effect a successful completion of the projectand also ensure that all traces of our mutual involvement are completelywiped off. This presents no problem, as all documented evidence will beunder my supervision directed. It is important we claim these funds forourselves immediately since such kind of time deposits automaticallyreverts to the British Government in the 5th year of dormancy, asstipulated by the Financial Act of 1987.We have earmarked a commission of 30% of the total amount for you, 5%will be set aside to cover expenses on both sides, and 65% for us.Should you be interested in this transaction, please furnish us with your 1) Full Names, 2) Date of Birth, 3) Residential Address, 4) Telephone and Fax Numbers.I will sure be contacting you soon enough.Best Regards,Sir John Bannister.Direct Mail: sirjohnbannister@yahoo.com
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