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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: "Tracey McDermott" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <tools2563@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 23 Jun 2015 07:05:11 -0000
Subject: We have recovered your unclaimed funds

Our Ref: PC201780.ISS10884040

Dear Sir/Ma

This is to inform you that we have recovered your unclaimed funds of $7.3million USD from a commercial Bank here in London.

The FCA recovered your funds via its ongoing intelligence work with counterparts in the United States, Homeland Security Investigations (formerly known as Immigration & Customs Enforcement), and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).

We strongly believe you must have been a victim of scam because the said funds was deposited in the account without your consent, under the British law, we are bound to return the said funds back to you because every account details bears your name.

Please kindly visit our London Office 25 The North Colonnade Canary Wharf London E14 5HS for your funds claim. You shall be required to come with Your International Passport or Drivers License as means of identification.


We can best process your complaint if we receive accurate and complete information from you. Therefore, we request that you provide the following information when filing a complaint:

Your name
Your mailing address
Your telephone number
The name, address, telephone number, and Web address, if available, of the individual or organization you believe defrauded you.
Specific details on how, why, and when you believe you were defrauded.
Any other relevant information you believe is necessary to support your complaint.

Your urgent response will be highly appreciated.

Sincerely

Tracey McDermott
Director, Enforcement and Financial Crime Division
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
25 The North Colonnade,
Canary Wharf,
London
E14 5HS
United Kingdom

Anti-fraud resources: