joewein.net   joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days
  jwSpamSpy

Home
About Us
Spam
419/Nigeria
Fraud
Contact

"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 Austin Uwabor" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <uwabormraustin@yahoo.com.hk>
Date: Sat, 12 Jun 2010 07:31:50 +1000
Subject: Momentous Letter: you must read!

Mr. Austin Uwabor
Chief accountant,
Accounting department
Wema Bank of Nigeria
Marina- branch,
Lagos.
 
Attention:
 
Re: transfer of the sum of us$30.5m dollars into your account.
 
First, I must solicit your confidence in this transaction. This is by virtue of its nature as being utterly confidential and top secret. Though I know that a transaction of this magnitude will make any one apprehensive and worried. But I am assuring you that all will be well at the end of the day. We have decided to contact you through this medium due to the urgency of this transaction as we have been reliably informed of your discreteness and ability.
 
my name is Austin Uwabor, chief accountant, Accounting Department Wema Bank of Nigeria.I am writing in respect of a foreigner, an American national, late Engr. Joseph Haydon , an oil merchant/contractor with the federal government of Nigeria, until his death on Monday, October 24, 2005 in a ghastly airline crash flight twin-engine Boeing 737, 111 passengers and six crew members on board, according to Bellview Airlines.
.
You can visit the website for more confirmation of http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/africa/10/24/nigeria.plane/
 
Sequel to this, fervent valuable efforts were made by nationwide merchant bank to get in touch with any of the late Engr. Joseph Haydon family or relatives but proved to no avail. it is because of the perceived possibility of not being able to locate any of the late Engr. late Joseph Haydon ... next-of-kin (he have no wife and children) that the management under the influence of our honorable chairman and members of the board of directors, that arrangement will be made for the fund to be declared"un-claimable" and subsequently be donated to the trust fund for the purchase of arms and ammunitions to further enhance the course of war in Africa and the world in general.
 
"War is a crime against humanity" in order to avert this crude and negative development, some of my trusted colleagues and I now seek your permission to have you stand as the next-of-kin to late Engr.! late Joseph Haydon , so that the fund US$30.5m would be released and paid into your account as the beneficiary's next-of kin. All documents and proves to enable you receive this fund will be carefully worked out and more so as professional bankers, we are assuring you of 100% risk free involvement. Your share stays while the rest will be for myself and my colleagues for investment purposes in your country.
 
i agreed that 20% will be your share as a foreign partner in respect of providing an account while 10% will take of any expenses that might be incurred in the process of succeeding the transfer and the rest will be for me and partners which will contribute to make everything possible. Thereafter I will visit your country for disbursement, as I am almost due for retirement. Upon the receipt of you.
 
I will not fail to bring to your notice that this business is hitch free and that you should not entertain any fear as the whole required arrangement as been perfected for the transfer. You are to provide for us your company name and address, phone and fax numbers (private) your full name as you want it to appear in your application form of claim and little information’s about yourself, so that i equally know your ability to handle this transaction.
 
Have a nice day.
 
Best regards,
Austin Uwabor
Chief accountant,
Wema Bank of Nigeria
Cell +234 707 020 7953
Zenith Bank of Nigeria.

This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. 

If you have received this email in error please notify the system manager. Please note that any views or opinions presented in this email are solely

those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the company. Finally, the recipient should check this email and any attachments for 

the presence of viruses. The company accepts no liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by this email.

Anti-fraud resources: