419 scam: "Mr.Williams James" <nassiroualibaba@gmail.com> Urgent Attention!

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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.
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "western union" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "money gram" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "mtcn" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "money transfer control number" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "cotonou" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
- +229 (Benin, probably a prepaid mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr.Williams James" <nassiroualibaba@gmail.com>
Reply-To: owesternunion579@gmail.com
Date: Thu, 10 Nov 2022 23:49:34 +0100
Subject: Urgent Attention!

Attention: Sir/Madam,

Your US$2,500 Pick-Up (MTCN) is:9917462510 We stopped sending your
money this week because of spam emails you were receiving from people
that claim to be Western Union. We were confused about this so we have
tried and have arrested some of them. Now the situation has calmed
down and we have started sending money to the whole people concerned.
The new arrangement is that what you will receive everyday is $5000
USD till the total sum of $3.4 million USD is completed and what you
will pay is $100 usd only, But this is the beginning so you can go
ahead and pay the $100 usd so that you can receive your first payment
today because your first payment has already been sent, this is the
mtcn#;9917462520 track it, but you cannot pick it till you send the
needed $100 as I told you.

Below is your first payment for $ 5000 usd sent. Click on the link
below to track your $5000 payment status now. It is a compulsory step
to take if you really want to gain access to your payment. You can
also copy and paste the link on your web browser:

Track View Website link:
https://www.westernunion.com/ca/en/web/track-transfer/results
Money Transfer Control Number (REFERENCE) #
MTCN...9917462510
Sender first name:::MR David
Sender last name::: Frink

Western Union Director; Mr David Frink
Western Union Department

Your urgent response is highly needed in sending the $100 usd to
enable us to proceed to reconfirm your payment file from the World
Bank central System.
sent it through Ria or western union money gram

Receivers Name :MUSA BELLO
Country: Benin Republic
City: Porto Novo
Code: +229
Amount:$ 100
Senders Name:
MTCN:

Note that you need to reconfirm these details from you in case there
is any wrong with the one we sent then we correct it.
Full Name---------------
Country---------------------
Address------------------------
Tel-------------------------

Yours in service,

Mr.Williams James,
Foreign Operation Manager
Western Union Office
Cotonou Benin Republic,

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam