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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.

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Fraud email example:

From: "african development bank" <info@a-d-bank.com>
Reply-To: drfred_obinna22@sify.com
Date: Fri, 05 Aug 2005 08:08:47 +0000
Subject: PRIVATE BUSINESS PROPOSAL

FROM DESK OF:DR.FRED OBINNA.
BILLS & EXCHANGE DEPT,
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK OF NIGERIA(A.D.B)
LAGOS-NIGERIA.
RC.27199.

Dear Sir,

STRICTLY A PRIVATE BUSINESS
PROPOSAL

I am Dr.Fred Obinna, The manager, Bills and Exchange at the Foreign
Remittance Department of the A.D.B Bank of Nigeria Plc. I am writing this
letter to ask for your support and cooperation to carry out this business
opportunity in my department. We discovered an abandoned sum of $15,000,000M
US DOLLARS (15 million United States Dollars only) in an account that
belongs to one of our foreign customers who died along with his entire
family of a wife and two children in November 2001 in a Plane crash.

Since we heard of his death, we have been expecting hi next-of-kin to come
over and put claims for his money as the heir, because we cannot release the
fund from his account unless someone applies for claim as the next-of-kin to
the deceased as indicated in our banking guidelines.

Unfortunately, neither their family member nor distant relative has
everappeared to claim the said fund. Upon this discovery, I and other
officials in my department have agreed to make business with you and release
the total amount into your account as the heir of the fund since no one came
for it or discovered he maintained account with our bank, otherwise the fund
will be returned to the banks treasury as unclaimed fund.

We have agreed that our ratio of sharing will be as stated thus;

20 % for you as foreign partner, 75 % for us the officials in my department
and 5 % for the settlement of all local and foreign expences incurred by us
and you during the course of this business.

Upon the successful completion of this transfer, I and one of my colleagues
will come to your country and mind our share. It is from our 75 % we intend
to import Agricultural Machineries into my country as a way of recycling the
fund.


To commence this transaction, we require you to immediately indicate your
interest by a return e-mail and enclose your private contact telephone
number, fax number full name and address and your designated bank
coordinates to enable us file letter of claim to the appropriate departments
for necessary approvals before the transfer can be made.

Note also, this transaction must be kept STRICTLY CONFIDENTIALbecause of its
nature.

I look forward to receiving your prompt response.

DR.FRED OBINNA.
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK OF NIGERIA(A.D.B).


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