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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:
Date: Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:21:34 +0000
Subject: Cry for help


Good Day,
How you doing over there? hope all is fine.
first and foremost i will like to tell you that i do believe you are God sent, because , i have be praying and fasting over this, that God should provide me with a sincere and reliable person with Godly mind.

I am Michael Bilora Kamara and the only surviving child of late Steve Kamara who traded in gold and diamond before his assassination during the Sierra Leone civil war. My Father , mother, and two brothers were assassinated and burnt beyond recognition by rebels after looting cash, diamonds and gold from my family but somehow spared my life.

I am contacting you in respect of the sum of $5,000.000.00 and 156 kilo of Gold Dust deposited by my late father in a Bank here in Ghana before he died. This money is part of money he realized from the sales of diamonds and gold by him.

My father told me and my younger sister JULIET KAMARA (who died on the 17th of December 2008 due to poor medical attention resulting from my inability to buy prescribed drugs for her) about these deposit with this bank in Ghana, and when we came to Ghana after his death we found the bank and I confirmed that the funds FIVE (5) MILLION DOLLARS AND 156KILO OF GOLD are still in their safe custody.

Due to our refugee status, we were not qualified to claim the deposit, more so before Daddy's death he gave me and my younger sister some documents and he said that this documents are the documents covering the deposit and that am the next of kin so with all this documents the funds will be released to me.

I been the next of kin to the funds so it was then i was told that at the time my late father deposited the funds he made an agreement with the Bank that only his foreign business partners in overseas has the right to received the said funds so they shows me the document and i went through mine also it is the same, so i told them that we will look for one of my late father partners in overseas and as soon as i talked to any i will let them know.

So i went and confided in a lawyer here in Ghana and told him everything so the lawyer confronted the Bank and was also told the same thing so he told me to look for any of my late father business partners in overseas so i told him that i do not know any so he ask me to look for a trust worthy person that will assist me a God fearing person that will not run away with the funds before i got your email contact.

What I require of you to do for me now is your agreeing to this proposal and contact the Bank to claim the funds from the Bank here in Ghana(I beg for your utmost HONESTY assuring me that you will not betray me when the funds is handed/transfered to you.)I agree to give you 25% from the funds $5,000,000.00 and the GOLD for been my beneficiary in overseas that will stand as my late father foreign investor and the balance 75% will be mine and you will assist me to secure new documents that will enable me to travel down to join you in your country beause i will be continue school, while you help me invest my funds in any profitable business there in your country.

Please in your reply include your;
A: FULL NAMES
B: ADDRESS
C: Direct Cell Phone #

As these information will be required by the Bank here in Ghana as my beneficiary.
Hope to hear from you soon. (michaelkam_11@yahoo.com)
Best Regards
Thanks and God bless.
Michael Bilora Kamara

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