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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.

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Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: "Barrister Johannes Krauss," (may be fake)
Reply-To: <barristerjohannesk1@yahoo.com>
Date: Sat, 9 May 2015 01:46:57 -0600
Subject: DEAR SIR/MADAM

DEAR SIR/MADAM

Kindly accept my apology for sending unsolicited mail to you. I believe you are a highly respected personality, considering the fact that I sourced your profile from a human resource profile database on your country.

I am Barrister Johannes Krauss Solicitor. I am the Personal Attorney to MR STEVE ANDERSON a national of your country, who used to work with Shell Development Company in Nigeria. On the 21 of December 2014, my client, his wife and their two children were involved in a car accident along Sagamu Express way in a Peugeot 504 with the Registration Number LA9657CK, All occupants of the vehicle unfortunately lost their lives.


Since then I have made several enquiries to your embassy to locate any of my clients extended relatives, this has also proved unsuccessful.

After these several unsuccessful attempts, I decided to trace his relatives over the Internet, to locate any member of his family but of no avail, hence I contacted you. I have contacted you to assist in repatriating the money that belong to my late client before they get confiscated or declared unserviceable by the bank where these huge deposits were lodged.

Particularly, the Bank where the deceased had an account valued at about US$5million (FIVE MILLION UNITED STATE DOLLARS) and right now the bank has issued me a notice to provide the next of kin to my late client or have the account confiscated within some period of time. Since i have been unsuccessful in locating the right relatives for over 4 months now I seek your consent to present you as the next of kin of the deceased since i can not get the rightful beneficiary.


I have every necessary Document to back up this claim as the attorney to my Late Client and the sharing ratio will be 50% to me and 40% to you, while the remaining 10% will be for charity.


I guarantee that this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law.

Barrister Johannes Krauss,
PRINCIPAL ATTORNEY

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