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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: "Anthony Marchant" <wiimond@beehive.org>
Reply-To: willmond@o2.pl
Date: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 22:51:45 -0700
Subject: Reply soon............


--
Dear Friend,

I am the attorney and trustee to late Mr. Morris Tolbert. My late client
deposited the sum of Seventeen Million United States Dollars in a bank in
Hungary. I have made several attempts to locate any of my clients relatives
without success. I am contacting you to assist in claiming the money left
behind by my client before they get confiscated or declared unserviceable by
the Bank where the deposit was made.

All legal documents to aid your claim for this fund and to prove your
relationship with the deceased will be arranged for. I guarantee that this
will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from
any breach of the law. Your help will be appreciated with half of the total
sum. Reply for more details if interested. please include your phone and
fax number in your reply for better communication.

Mr. Marchant

Anti-fraud resources: