419 scam: "Ms Kate Mokoma" <kate.mokoma@hotmail.com> Dearest One

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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:

This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "dearest one," (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "abidjan" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- "cotonou" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.

Fraud email example:

From: "Ms Kate Mokoma" <kate.mokoma@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: katemokoma@yahoo.com
Date: Mon, 15 Aug 2011 21:13:20 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Dearest One

Dearest One,
My name is Kate Mokoma. I am from Yopougon, a town in Abidjan, the
commercial capital of Ivory Coast. I am 22 yrs old. I am writing you this
mail because I need your sincere help to transfer US$11.7 Million into a
foreign account. This money belongs to my father, Dr. Anderson Mokoma. He
is late now. He was killed during the recent political crisis in the
country. This also forced me to move out of the country because I became
alone and lonely, since I lost my mother at birth. Now, I am in Cotonou,
the capital city of The Republic of Benin. I stay in a refugee camp here.
There are many people here from different countries and everyone is packed
together. The atmosphere is not conducive for me. But my major concern is
to get this fund transferred into a foreign account, so that I can be able
to complete my education and pursue my goals in life.
I have contacted the bank where the deposit was made but the director told
me that except a foreign account is provided, I can't be granted access to
the fund. This is why I have contacted you, so that you can provide your
account to receive the fund on my behalf and based on trust.
I hope you'll understand.
Anticipating your kind and urgent response today.
Kate.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam