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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: Peter Obrien <peterobrien01@e-mail.ua>
Reply-To: peterobrien001@hotmail.com
Date: Fri, 24 Oct 2014 16:50:07 -0500
Subject: INVESTMENT PROPOSAL, NO UPFRONT PAYMENT


Dear Prospective Partner, INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY, NO UPFRONT PAYMENT Firstl=
y, I apologize for sending you this sensitive information via e-mail instea=
d of a Certified mail/Post-mail. This is due to the urgency and importance =
of the information. This project is based on trust, confidentiality and sin=
cerity of purpose in order to have an acceptable meeting of the minds. My n=
ame is Mr. Peter O'Brien, General Manager Fund Investment Dept., Hong Kong =
and Shanghai Banking Corporation, HSBC Banking Group. Base on good recommen=
dation that you are a straight forward fellow and reliable to do business w=
ith in areas of investment and financial partnering, I am writing to acquai=
nt you of a transaction and monetary transfer of US$12.5 Million which is c=
urrently domiciled in at my Bank Head office. I need you as a partner to ha=
ve custody of this funds and we can invest on Real Estate, oil and gas, sto=
cks and bonds and other viable investments in the United States after the f=
unds are transferred to you. No financial obligations will be required of y=
ou as long as trust and mutual goals applies. You will not send a dime to m=
e or to the Bank as we already have all arrangement sorted out to swiftly c=
onclude this transfer with you through a financial aid system (FINANCING CO=
MPANY) that will handle all expenses. I await your urgent response. You can=
reach me on my personal email: peterobrien001@hotmail.com Best Regards, Pe=
ter O'Brien

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