419 scam: "Capt Paul Smith" <americansoldiersmith21@gmail.com> HOW ARE YOU TODAY?!!!!!!

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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 fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
- "diplomatic immunity"
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "million united states dollars" (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)
- ",000,000" (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)
- "diplomatic immunity" ("diplomats" who perform deliveries of cash or other valuables to you only exist in 419 scams)
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
- smithsoldierpaul@gmail.com (Gmail/GoogleMail; can be used from anywhere worldwide)

Fraud email example:

From: "Capt Paul Smith" <americansoldiersmith21@gmail.com>
Reply-To: smithsoldierpaul@gmail.com
Date: Sun, 20 Mar 2011 23:53:47 +0530 (IST)
Subject: HOW ARE YOU TODAY?!!!!!!

My Dear,

With due respect,Pardon me for this letter. This is a genuine matter of
utmost importance and immense mutual benefit which must be kept highly
confidential.It is with genuine interest and trust that I have contacted
you.I know you would be surprised to read from someone relatively unknown
to you before now,I have a very desperate need for assistance and have
summed up courage to contact you. I found your contact particulars in an
address journal,My name is (Capt Paul Smith),I am an American soldier,
serving in the Military with the army's 3rd infantry division and I am
seeking your kind assistance to move the sum of Twenty Five million United
States dollars ($25,000,000 MILLIONS US DOLLARS ) to you , as far as I can
be assured that my share will be safe in your care Until i complete my
service here. This was quite an illegal thing to do, but i tell you what!
no compensation can make up For the risk we have taken with our lives in
this hell hole, of which my closes friend Was killed by a road side bomb
last time in the battle field. One Passionate appeal i will make to you is
not to discuss this matter with anybody, should You have reasons to reject
this offer, please and please destroy this message as any Leakage of this
information will be too bad for the u.s. soldier's here in Iraq. I do Not
know how long we will remain here; month of May was the deadliest month
for us out Here.

Totally,we lost 127 men and i have been shot, wounded and survived two
suicide Bomb attacks by the special grace of god.This and other reasons i
will mention later Has prompted me to reach out for help. We plan on using
diplomatic means to shipping the money out as military cargo, using
diplomatic immunity.This is the reason for contacting you.Once the funds
get to you,take your 30% out and keep our own 70%.The only thing we
require from you is just for you to help us find a safe place where the
funds can be sent to,because Iraq is a war zone. If you are interested get
back for more details with the email below,I honestly want this matter to
be resolved immediately: smithsoldierpaul@gmail.com

May god bless you and your family,
Capt Paul Smith.

Anti-fraud resources:

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