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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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

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

• The following fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "international court of justice" (not involved with lotteries)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "anti-terrorism certificate" ("anti-terrorist", "anti-money laundering" or "drug-free" certificates are a common way for criminals in fake lottery scams and other Advance Fee scams to get you to send money to them. There are no such certificates in the real banking world. )
  • "clear source of funds certificate" ("anti-terrorist", "anti-money laundering" or "drug-free" certificates are a common way for criminals in fake lottery scams and other Advance Fee scams to get you to send money to them. There are no such certificates in the real banking world. )
  • "certificates of origin of funds" ("anti-terrorist", "anti-money laundering" or "drug-free" certificates are a common way for criminals in fake lottery scams and other Advance Fee scams to get you to send money to them. There are no such certificates in the real banking world. )
  • "claims office" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "(ecowas)" (the name of a person or institution often appearing in 419 scams)
  • "ecowas " (the name of a person or institution often appearing in 419 scams)
  • "cheque " (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!
• This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
  • +2347034860911

Fraud email example:

From: Ella Stewart <executive_sec062006@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 8 Oct 2007 21:19:42 +0000
Subject: Parcel Identification NO.(CPEL/OWN/5687) THOMAS PATINO



Foundation's Officer,AZIONEAIUTO ITALIACorso Ercole I d'Este 44,Ferrara 5646 Italy.http://www.azioneaiuto.it
Concern Recipient: THOMAS PATINO, The AZIONEAIUTO ITALIA, established in the year 1977 by the Multi-Million groups and now supported by the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS), United Nations Organization (UNO) and the European Union (EU) was conceived with the objective of human growth, educational, and community development. On behalf of the Donations Board we will like to say congratulations once again . We do believe that the Donation/Grant will be put into good use for your personal, educational and business development. On Behalf of the Screening Committee of the Donations Board, I wish to formally announce to you that you have successfully passed the Email Screening and Verification Matching Test conducted for all online winners in your Category. Hence you have therefore been cleared. Your cheque have been issued and has been sent to the Ecowas officer in the Ecowas region were your name fell into because winners are sub divided into various sponsor regions and your name fell under the Ecowas region. All necessary documents regarding your Donation/Grant have been processed and enclosed in your parcel along with your cheque for the sum of $650,000. Your parcel contains the following documents:
1.YOUR PAYMENT CHEQUE FOR THE SUM OF $650,0002.WINNING CERTIFICATE FROM THE DONATIONS BOARD.3.CLEAR SOURCE OF FUNDS CERTIFICATES(C.S.F.C.)4.ANTI-TERRORISM CERTIFICATES(A.T.C)5.CERTIFICATES OF ORIGIN OF FUNDS(C.O.F.)6.LETTER OF AFFIDAVITS FROM THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE, STATING THAT THE WINNING WAS RECEIVED LEGALLY FROM THE UNIVERSAL DONATION PROGRAM, AND DUELY SIGNED BY THE LEGAL ATTORNEY TO THE DONATIONS BOARD.
These documents will aid/facilitate the release of your money when you have paid the cheque into your bank. When you present the documents at your local bank in your country, they will call the bank that the cheque was issued from here in Italy for verificaion and withing five(5) working days from the date of deposit the funds will be released to you for use.
These documents have been securely sealed and packed for security reasons which makes it impossible for anyone to view it's content until it has been delivered to you. The Donations board has heard past encounter of double claims due to winners informing close friends relatives and third parties about their winning and also sharing their pin numbers. As a result of this, these friends try to claim the donation on behalf of the real winners.
You are hereby advised to please keep this grant confidential until you have finished proceedings and have safely claimed your grant. Please take note. Your parcel with identification number: CPEL/OWN/5687 has been sent to our affiliate claims office, because your winning falls within our ECOWAS booklet. You have been directed to contact the Ecowas Counsellor in charge of claims/dispatch immediately for shipment of your parcel.
Below is the contact information of the Ecowas counsellor in charge of your winnings;
Ecowas Counsellor; Mr Donald Williams.Ecowas head office.Abuja Nigeria.Email; ecowas_counselor_021@hotmail.comTel: +2347034860911
IMPORTANT NOTICE: This office will not be responsible for any outstanding fees for delivery. Services rendered by the delivery company at the Ecowas region were your parcel will be shipped from are to be paid by you the beneficiary and not the donations board please take note. Have it in mind that your won prize cannot be deducted from. This is because your cheque cannot be cashed by anyone else but you the beneficiary. It is a measure taken by the donations board to avoid fraudulent activities. This is in accordance with section 13(1)(n) of the donations act as adopted in the year 1993 and amended on 3RD July 1996 by the constitutional assembly in charge of the donations. This is to protect winners and to avoid misappropriation of funds. It is imperative that you add your identification number {CPEL/OWN/5687} as the subject of any correspondence with the dispatch office to ensure they respond in a timely manner. I will require a concise update on proceedings with the dispatch office as soon as you are in contact with them. If you need any assistance whatsoever, please do not hesitate to let me know. Best Regards,Mrs. Ella StewartDonations Agent.
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam