419 Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam (2006-01)

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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:

This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "chief auditor" (the name of a person or institution often appearing in 419 scams)
- "johnokaah@yandex.com" (this email address has been used in a known scam)
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.

Fraud email example:

From: "John Okaah" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <johnokaah@yandex.com>
Date: Mon, 18 May 2015 13:33:27 +0100
Subject: =?utf-8?Q?Spam?=
Greetings

Greetings from Okaah,

I writing to seek an investment advice from you and to ask for your cooperation in a business of mutual benefit. I am chief Auditor heading computing department of our bank in Malaysia

It is about some fund stashed from our bank excess made from crude oil business , it does not belong to any person.

Prior to my contact with you,I placed it into a dormant escrow call account without beneficiary, so that upon your agreement to work with me, I will programme your name as the beneficiary/depositor of this account.

I have worked with the bank for many years and have earned alot of trust with them. Am highly trusted by my bank. I have submitted end of the year financial report and nobody knew about this fund. All I seek is your honesty, trust so that I will get this fund transferred to any account of your choice without any hitch and through legal means. At the conclusion of this transaction, you will be given 50% of the total amount, 50% will be for me and my Bank colleagues who will help make this business a success. I will like to invest my own share in your company

Let me know if you are in. Contact me through this email address ( johnokaah@yandex.com ).

Regards
John Okaah

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam