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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: "Elizabeth Anna Johnson" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <jelizabethanna@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, 31 Jul 2015 03:53:31 -0700
Subject: [SPAM]My beloved friend in the Lord, please read and get back to me
urgently.

Dear friend,

Greetings in the name of God Please let this not sound strange to you for my only surviving lawyer who would have done this died earlier this year.

I prayed and got your email id from the internet. I am Mrs. Elizabeth Anna Johnson from Germany, I am 71 years old, and I am suffering from a long time cancer of the lungs which also affected my brain. From all indication my conditions is really deteriorating and it is obvious according to my doctors, they have advised me that I have few months to live, this is earth because the cancer has gotten to a very bad stage.

I was brought up from a motherless baby's home and was married to my late husband Dr. A. Johnson for twenty years without a child, l and my late husband relocated in South Africa before he died in a fatal motor accident before his death we were true believers. Since his death I decided not to re-marry, I sold all my inherited estate/ belongings and deposited all the sum of $5.6million dollars with a Bank.

Presently, this money is still with the bank and the management just wrote me to come forward with a heir to administer my money because they have kept it for so long or I should rather issue a letter of authorization to somebody to receive it on my behalf since I cannot come over because of my illness or they get it confiscated.

Presently, I'm with my laptop in a hospital here in South Africa where I have been undergoing treatment for cancer of the lungs. My doctors have told me that I have only a few months to live. It is my last wish to see that this money is invested in an organization of your choice and distributed each year among the charity organization, the poor and the motherless baby's home.

I want you as a God fearing person, to also use this money to fund Churches, Mosque, Orphanages and Widows as well as building a Hospital for the treatment of cancer; I took this decision, before I rest in peace because my time will soon be up.

As soon as I receive your reply I shall give you the contact of the Bank. I will also issue you a letter of authority that will prove you as the new beneficiary of my fund.

Provide me with your information so I can send it to the bank as the new beneficiary and issue you a letter of authorization.

FULL NAMES:__________SEX: _____ AGE: ______MARITAL STATUS:_______________COUNTRY: ______CONTACT ADDRESS: ________________________PHONE NO#___________FAX NO#_________________OCCUPATION:______________.

Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I stated herein, Hoping to hear from you soonest.

Your friend in Christ,
Mrs. Elizabeth Anna Johnson
(Johannesburg, South Africa)

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