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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: "Stewart Barculo" <stewart@info.net>
Reply-To: stewartbarculo@hotmail.com
Date: Mon, 4 Jan 2010 03:09:59 +0100 (CET)
Subject: RE

Good Day,

My name is Stewart Barculo, Staff of Standard Life Bank Limited.

Though I have not considered this medium to be the best manner to have
approached you on this issue being that the internet has been greatly
abused over the recent years and is very unsecured for information’s
of vital importance. I have decided to take the chance seeing that no
other means could have been faster and more efficient than the E-mail.

I am contacting you concerning a deceased customer and an investment he
placed under our banks management four years ago to the tune of fifty
million UnitedStates dollars($50,000,000.00).I would respectfully
request that you keep the contents of this mail confidential and
respect the integrity of the information you come by as a result of
this mail. I have been in charge of this department for nine years and
to best of my knowledge, I have discharged my duty with equity, In the
process of review of the financial report by my department, I
discovered that both of you have a similar last name; hence I contacted
you so that I can give you further briefing on my intention and how to
disburse the funds and estate he left behind.

My proposal; you share the same surname With our late client; I am
prepared to place you as the next of kin and have the funds release to
you as the closest surviving relation, I am prepared to share the money
with you in half 50/50, I have evaluated the risks and the only risk I
have here is from you refusing to work with me and alerting my bank,
please, again, note I am a family man; I have a wife and children. I
send you this mail not without a measure of fear as to what the
consequences, but I know within me that nothing ventured is nothing
gained and that success and riches never come easy or on a platter of
gold.

Kindly send your response to my private email address:
stewartbarculo@hotmail.com

I await your response.

Stewart Barculo.


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