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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: "Mrs.Laura Eidenberg" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <laurae.eidenberg@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, 5 Nov 2017 15:15:48 -0800
Subject: My Last Wish.

Dearest Beloved,
 
I know that this letter might be a surprise to you, I came across your email contact from my personal search and I instructed
 
the doctor here in this hospital to help me email you and I believe that you will be honest to fulfill my final wish before I
 
will die.
 
I am Mrs Laura Eidenberg from Belgium, I am 78 years old, I am deaf and suffering from a long time cancer of the breast. From
 
all indication my condition is really deteriorating, and my doctor have courageously advised me that I may not live beyond
 
the next two months, this is because the cancer stage has reached a critical extent, of which I am having difficulties unable
 
to move my entire body. I was brought up in a motherless baby's home, and was married to my late husband for twenty years
 
without a child. My husband and I are true Christians, we lived all day in Sierra Leone, since he was working here as a
 
contractor, but quite unfortunately, he died in a fatal motor accident. Since his death I decided not to re-marry and because
 
of my bad state of health, I sold all my inherited belongings and deposited all the sum of $28.3million dollars (Twenty Eight
 
Million Three Hundred Thousand United States Dollars Only) with Natwest Bank in United States of America.
 
Presently, this money is still in the Bank, and the management of the Bank has wrote a letter to me as the rightful
 
Legitimate beneficiary to come forward to receive the money after keeping it for so long or rather issue a letter of
 
authorization to somebody to receive it on my behalf since I can not come over as a result of my present cancer illness
 
situation, otherwise they get it confiscated. Presently, I'm with my laptop computer in a hospital where I have been
 
undergoing treatment. I have since lost my ability to talk and my doctor has told me that I have only a few months to live.
 
It is my last wish to see that this money is invested in any organization of your choice and distributed each year among the
 
charity organization, the poor and the motherless baby's home where I grew up from. I want your good humanitarian, to also
 
use this money to fund churches, orphanages and widows around. I must let you know that this was a very hard decision, but I
 
had to take a bold step towards this issue because I have no further option. I hope you will help see my last wishes to come
 
true.
 
As soon as I receive your reply, I shall give you the contact details of my Account Officer who will direct you to my late
 
husband’s lawyer to secure all the legal documents which will proof you as my Next of Kin I sent to receive my fund presently
 
at the Natwest Bank in United States of America. Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I have stated in this
 
message. Please reply me back using my direct email address: laurav.eidenberg@gmail.com
 
Hope to hear from you soon.
 
I await your urgent response my beloved.
 
Thank you very much for your kind assistance,
 
Mrs. Laura Eidenberg.

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