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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. Joseph Hansen." <gosb12@yahoo.pt>
Reply-To: joseph.hansen@yandex.com
Date: Sat, 28 Feb 2015 11:11:45 -0300
Subject: Message from Mr. Joseph.




Good day my friend. My name is Mr. Joseph Hansen. I am using this medium
(Internet) to contact you today as I believe it is efficient and has a
better guarantee for business privacy. My message to you is purely
private and it should be treated as such. I work in one of the commercial
bank here in Nigeria and an account officer to one late Mr. Robert Bowman
Atkinson, a domiciliary account holder in our Victoria Island branch
office. Before his death, he is a site engineer to a multi-national oil
company here in Nigeria.

The Management and the Legal department of our bank in a recent meeting
recommended that the bank account of late Mr. Robert Bowman which is in
dormant status since 2003 should be closed and depositor's fund return to
the Bank Treasury according to the Banking procedures and Financial law.

Mr. Robert Bowman was a foreigner based in Victoria-Island but on that
faithful day, he was supervising work at the company’s new oil site
located at Ijaw axis of Warri in Delta State of Nigeria when the angry
youths laid ambush on them on site. He was killed along other Nigerian
engineers who are working with him. WARRI CRISIS I must tell you claimed
many souls which were not mentioned by the government. You can confirm
the news through this website: www.worldpress.org/Africa/1083.cfm
Since Mr. Bowman’s death, as his account officer, I have made several
efforts to contact or locate either of his people whom he wrote down as
his next of kin or any family member but all my efforts failed. Since none
of his brother/ relations showed up for the claim, I want you to come in
and act as one. I will provide for you all necessary documents that will
be required to release the deposit of Nine million six hundred thousand
two hundred and fifty dollars to you.

On receiving your reply genuinely promising me that you will work with me
to get the fund, I will then send an application letter to the legal
department of our bank. The lawyer in charge will definitely contact you
for personal confirmation. When he has completed investigation on the
documents I will summit on your favor as Mr. Bowman’s next of kin, he will
sign approval document authorizing the bank management to release the fund
to you. I shall guide you with all diligence to ensure that lawyer’s
investigation was on our favour.

It may surprise you that since the death of Mr. Bowman, I kept all his
information secret to myself planning and gathering information on how I
will handle the matter at the right time. Now I must tell you is the right
time and nothing will stop us from getting the fund. Please be adequately
informed that I am involving you into the business because Mr. Bowman is a
foreigner and as well his next of kin must be a foreigner. Presenting you
to the bank management as the next of kin to Mr. Bowman is my sole
responsibility and all is set for me to do so while yours is to provide
for me information that will be required from you as his next of kin. (i.e
Your names, address and your telephone number). Your bank account
particulars will be required when the legal department has certified you
the next of kin to Mr. Bowman.

I will give you more information as soon as you indicate your Interest to
work with me on this project. Take note; after successful completion of
transferring the fund into your bank account, I will come to your country
to take my own share and to invest same to any good business that I may
chose to run in your country. The money will be shared 60/35% while the
balance of 5% will be allocated for any expenses during the process of the
payment. I plead you to reply immediately whether interested or not, but
let me hear from you very fast. Send your reply directly to my private
screen address: joseph.hansen@yandex.com

Yours truly,
Mr. Joseph Hansen.



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