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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: wei <john.wei05@yahoo.pl>
Reply-To: wei <john_wei10@yahoo.com>
Date: Fri, 3 Jan 2014 08:36:25 +0000 (GMT)
Subject: From Mr. John Wei


>From Mr. John Wei

I know that this will come to you as a surprise
since we don’t know each other before.  For the purpose of
introduction, I am The Former Presidency Direct-or-General, in Ivory
Coast . After due deliberation , I decided to contact you for your
assistance in standing as benefactor to the sum of US$4.5Million (Four
Million, Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) equivalent
because, I and two other colleagues are currently in need of a silent
foreign partner whose identity we can use to transfer the said sum. This
fund accrued legitimately to us as commission from foreign contracts
with Department of Mining & Energy through our private connections.

The
fund is presently waiting to be remitted from London in The United
Kingdom to any overseas
beneficiary confirmed by me as associate/receiver. By virtue of my
political/religious position in my country, I cannot acquire this money
with my name. For this reason I took it upon myself to look for an
overseas silent partner who could work with me to facilitate transfer of
this fund for our mutual benefit, hence the reason for this message.
What I am requesting from you is:
(1) To be my silent partner and
receive the funds as the sole benefactor to the contract amount which I
shall secure all legal documentation from Ivory Coast to authenticate my
claim on your behalf.
(2) Provide a private telephone number for easy communication under your control.
(3)Receive the funds as the beneficiary,
take
out your commission after tax and keep the rest of the money until I
arrive there to meet you after the transfer is completed.

My
proposal is that after you receive the funds, it would be shared as
follows: (1) 20% to you as commission for
your co-operation and assistance in facilitating the transfer from The
United Kingdom to any of your nominated account, while the remaining 80%
belongs to me . You will be free to take out your commission
immediately after the money hits your country. Since my objective is to
invest the money in a foreign country, it would be appreciated if you
could also help me with advices and direction on investing into
profitable/lucrative ventures in your country for an additional 5%.
However, this is optional, and if it is not convenient for you to
further assist us with investing the money, we can end our cooperation
after you make available to us our part of the money.

The
transaction, although discrete, is legitimate and the money will be
transferred successfully with all necessary back-up official documents
showing legitimate source/origin of fund. The transfer will be effected
within a period not longer than two weeks as soon as we reach an
agreement
and you furnish me with a suitable response indicating your interest
for processing the transfer. I plead with you on one issue, whether you
are interested or not, kindly do not expose this information to any one
else. I confirm that the transaction is legitimate and without any risks
either to us or yourself. Please, give me your response immediately by
return mail

Yours Truly,

Mr. John Wei

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