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joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
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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.
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Cooper Sec (Pty) Limited" <dr.rufus@gmail.com>
Reply-To: <rufusraymond16@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 2016 13:15:24 -0500
Subject: Ref: Inquiry
Greetings:
HAPPY CHRISTMAS & PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!
My name is Mr. Rufus Raymond, a Registered Broker of Cooper Sec (Pty) Limited. One of my clients bearing the same name as yours died after a brief illness, in Manchester United Kingdom in March 2008 leaving US$8,360 000.00 under my care as the personal broker. I did managed to reached the wife telephonically only to find out of her death in 2012 with the only daughter; both killed by arm rubbers in their new home in Madrid - Spain.
Recently, Government is threatening to confiscate the funds if fails to provide the next of kin in 30 days. I cannot watch the Government confiscates the money so I decide to seek for someone sharing the same name/surname to claim the funds as the relative. That is why I contact you; I will share it with you in 50/50 ratio. Kindly respond with your full address and cell phone number for professional dialog/commencement. I have the power to present to the corresponding bank for immediate release of the funds to your care. Note our transfer processes are legal and must be done through online bank transfer method. Looking forward to hearing from you as soon as possible.
Until then have a great day!
Best Regards
Mr. Rufus Raymond
(The Chief Broker)
Importantly: If you are not interested, please ignore the message
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Anti-fraud resources:
