419 scam: "Albertho Lim (ESQ)" <albertholim@dpsonline.in> From Albertho Lim (ESQ)

joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet

Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days

Home

About Us

Spam

419/Nigeria

Fraud

Contact

"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:
- ",500,000" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
- "barr." (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
This email message is a next of kin scam.
Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.

Fraud email example:

From: "Albertho Lim (ESQ)" <albertholim@dpsonline.in>
Reply-To: <albertholim@live.com>
Date: Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:20:13 +0100
Subject: From Albertho Lim (ESQ)

Greetings,

I am Albertho Lim (ESQ), from Malaysia. My late client was a private oil consultant/contractor with the Shell Petroleum Development Company in Malaysia before his death. My client died as a result of a heart-related condition on April 22nd 2005. His heart condition was due to the death of his wife and his three children in the tsunami natural disaster on 26th December 2004 in Sumatra Indonesia. It may interest you to know that my client died "intestate".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_Ocean_earthquake

PROPOSITION:

I decided to contact you purely on a personal conviction of trust and confidence to assist in distributing the money left behind by my client. The deceased had a deposit valued presently at (USD$6,500,000:00) and the Bank has issued me a notice to provide a next of kin or beneficiary, otherwise the deposit would be confiscated.

My proposition to you is to seek your consent to present you as a relative/next-of-kin and beneficiary of my client, so that the proceeds of this account could be released to you. Then we can share the amount on a mutually agreed-upon percentage. All legal documents to back up your claim as my client's next-of-kin will be provided.

This will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law.

If this business proposition offends your moral values, do accept my apology. I must use this opportunity to implore you to exercise the utmost indulgence to keep this matter extraordinary confidential, whatever your decision, while I await your prompt response.

Please contact me at once to indicate your interest.

Best regards,
Barr. Albertho Lim

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam