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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. GORDON CHEN" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <ggchen001241@yahoo.com.hk>
Date: Mon, 7 Oct 2013 16:28:48 -0700
Subject: ATTENTION FROM MR. GORDON CHEN

Mr. Gordon Chen
Vice President & Branch Manager
Industrial and Commercial Bank  of China (USA) NA
San Gabriel Branch
168 West Valley  Boulevard
San Gabriel, CA 91776, USA.
 
 
I am writing  you this mail after going through your brief profile; I am with your person convinced that you and I will can
 
utilize this opportunity which is once in a lifetime. The purpose is for you and me to go into partnership after a
 
successful  conclusion of this transaction. However, this correspondence is un-official and private, and it should be
 
treated as  such. I also guarantee you that this transaction is hitch  free from all what you may think of.
I am Mr. Gordon Chen, Vice President & Branch Manager, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (USA) NA, San Gabriel Branch,
 
California and I am contacting you based on Trust and confidentiality that will be attached to this transaction.
 
The Management and the Legal department of our bank (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (USA) NA) in a recent meeting
 
recommended that the account of late Mr. ROMAN BLUM, who was one of my branch depositor, should be declared Dormant,
 
confiscated and the depositor's fund sent to the Bank Treasury according to U.S.A Banking and financial law. Late Roman Blum
 
died in January 2012 after a brief illness leaving no heir to his inheritance.  The bank has made several efforts to
contact any of his relatives to claim this money but without success. Even when the government made efforts to locate any
of his relatives on his properties, no heir was found and his state has taken possession of his estate.
 
You can read more from these websites:
1.      
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2316357/Roman-Blum-heirs-40m-fortune-Holocaust-survivors-estate-set-inherited-New-
 
York-state.html
2.      
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/nyregion/holocaust-survivor-left-an-estate-worth-almost-40-million-but-no-heirs.html?
 
pagewanted=all&_r=0
 
Late Mr. Roman Blum was an  account holder in my branch; he owns a dollar account with a huge sum of $26,450,000.00 (Twenty
 
Six Million, Four Hundred and Fifty Thousand United States Dollars) deposited in a Secret account with my branch. In fact,
 
since his death, no next of kin of the account holder nor any relative of him has shown up for the claim of this fund, this
 
is because he has the account as a secret account thus he left all the documents for the deposit with me as his account
 
officer and financial advisor.
This is where I am interested and where I want you to come in, I want you to come in as a relative of the deceased; do not
 
bother that you are not in any way related to him because I am in position to affix your name as the next of kin to the
 
deceased and no one will question it since I am the officer in charge of the account.
I will give you the relevant documents and contacts to file the application and then I will effect the approvals for the
transfer of the fund to your nominated bank account. I will be the one to provide the vital documents for the claims of
the money and then advise you exactly how we should handle it.
 
Please include your telephone number when replying this mail so I can call to give you more information as soon as you
 
indicate your willingness to assist in this transaction. The whole Procedures will last only 9 working days to get the fund
 
retrieved successfully without trace even in future. After the transfer of the fund to your nominated bank account, we shall
 
share the money 60-40.that is I will have 60% while you will have 40%.
 
Kindly respond promptly so that I can advice you on what next to do.
 
I will be waiting to hear from you.
Yours truly,
Gordon Chen
Vice President & Branch Manager,
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (USA) NA

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