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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: "Mr.Kevin Brown" <kbrown9000000@gmail.com>
Reply-To: kbrown5050@gmail.com
Date: Sun, 31 Aug 2008 01:31:53 +0000
Subject: FROM MR.KEVIN BROWN


*Dear Friend,
I am Mr. Kevin Brown from Haledon, North West London, and here in England. I
work for Natwest Bank Corporation London. I am writing you from my office
that will be of an immense benefit to both of us. In my department, being
the assistant manager (Greater London Regional Office, I discovered an
abandoned sum of $12.5 million USA Dollars (Twelve million five hundred
thousand Us Dollars) in an account that belongs to one of our foreign
customers Late Mr. Thompson Morrison American citizen who unfortunately lost
his life in the plane crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261 which crashed on
January 31 2000, including his wife and only daughter.

The choice of contacting you is aroused from the geographical nature of
where you live, particularly due to the senility of the transaction and the
confidentiality herein. Now our bank has been waiting for any of the
relatives to come-up for the claim but nobody has done that. I personally
has been unsuccessful in locating the relatives for 2 years now, I seek your
consent to present you as the next of kin/Will Beneficiary to the deceased
so that the proceeds of this account valued at 12.5 Million Dollars can be
paid to you.

This will be disbursed or shared in these percentages, 60% to me and 40% to
you. I have secured all necessary legal documents that can be used to back
up this claim we are making. All if need is to fill-in your names to the
documents and legalize it in the court here to prove you as the legitimate
beneficiary. All I require now is your honest Co-operation, Confidentiality
and Trust to enable us sees this transaction through. I guarantee you that
this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you
from any breach of the law.

Please, provide me the following: as we have 7 days to run it through. This
is very URGENT PLEASE.

1. Full Name
2. Your Telephone Number
3. Your Contact Address.
4. Age
5. Core Job/ Occupation

Having gone through a methodical search, I decided to contact you hoping
that you will find this proposal interesting. Please on your confirmation of
this message and indicating your interest, I will furnish you with more
information. Endeavor to let me know your decision rather than keep me
waiting.

Regards,
Mr. Kevin Brown.

*

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