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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. Michel Lafont" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <milafont6@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, 17 Jan 2015 02:03:23 -0800
Subject: Re: Bank Transaction! 1/17/2015

From:  Mr. Michel Lafont
            Auditor-General
            Administration and Finance
            ECOWAS Commission
            www.ecowas.int
Greetings Dear,
 
Subject:  Requesting your cooperation to transfer Ten Million United States dollars to a safe bank account.
 
I am the Auditor-General of the ECOWAS Commission, I got your contact from the West African Free Trade Database internet portal in my search of a reliable and trustworthy foreign partner and I hope we can work closely together on mutually ratified partnership agreement. The aforementioned funds were over-invoiced contract payments and I am sincerely seeking your collaboration to receive these funds into your private bank account because the Public Service Code of Conduct Bureau highly prohibits a public officeholder from operating a foreign bank account and the fund can only be paid out to a foreign bank account. By virtue of my status as the Head of the Audit/Accounts Department, I would sincerely wish to confidentially establish an investment partnership with you prior to my retirement from public service by mid 2016.
 
On completion of the transfer of the fund to a safe bank account, you will share 50% of the total fund to compensate your efforts, cover envisaged expense including cost of legal documentation for a transparent and hitch-free remittance, and my share of 50% will be kept in a safe interest yielding bank account under your watch until my official retirement and subsequent visit to meet personally with you in  your country.
We shall discuss further details of this deal as soon as I receive your unconditional acceptance, is rest assured that this transaction is 100% risk-free. It is pertinent to note that this fund will be transferred to your nominated bank account via swift without any breach of international financial law.
 
 
Best regards,
Mr. Michel Lafont.

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