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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: "Austin Williams" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <wu002110@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 3 Dec 2018 03:35:59 -0800
Subject: WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER

Western Union Money Transfer
EMS Post Office Agent Location
Cotonou, Benin Republic

Dear Valued Customer,

Greetings from Western Union Money Transfer Agent Location, EMS Post Office Cotonou Benin. We acknowledge the receipt of your email and in regard to the fund deposited here by Mr. Ron Hewitt to be transferred $1,750,000,00 to you. The said funds was credited in our transfer diskette as unclaimed funds. For security reasons and to safe guard your fund, proper verification's must be carried out before the fund is transferred.

We require the details below to compare with the details submitted to us by the depositor Mr. Ron Hewitt to enable us transfer your fund to you without misappropriation. We wish to inform you that your first $5,000 have been credited in our system and will be release to you once we receive your needed information bellow.

Please fill out the following form in the correct order. All fields mark with * are required.

Receiver's Name*:
Address*:
Country*:
Sex*:
Age*:
Cell Phone*:
Home Phone*:

As soon as these details are received and verified as a true and accurate copy, your fund will be transferred. If you have questions or need assistance, our team is here to help. You can call us on or better still, send us an email.

*IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please disregard any email that does not bear your Reference Number WU/RG/LA/04/08/JT/0900. Always include this reference code in any email sent to us.

Best Regards,
Mr. Austin Williams.
Western Union Money Transfer Agent Location, EMS Post Office.
Registered No: 1026167. Head Office: 125 Marina Street, Benin Phone
Office: (wu002110@gmail.com)
E-mail: rw73219@gmail.com

Anti-fraud resources: