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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
  (+225 +229 +234 +27 +31 +32 +34 +44 other)
• Company names mentioned in 419 spam:
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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.

Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.

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Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "hundred thousand 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)
  • "foreign remittance department" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
• 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.
  • mrchris@gawab.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mrchris Solomon" <mrchrissolomon@msn.com>
Reply-To: mrchris@gawab.com
Date: Sun, 29 Jan 2006 16:41:43 +0000
Subject: FROM CHRIS SOLOMON

FROM CHRIS SOLOMON
Dearest,

I am Mr Chris Solomon,a manager in the Bills and Exchange at the Foreign
Remittance Department of one of the leading banks in Ghana. 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$12,500,000.00 (Twelve Million Five Hundred
Thousand United States Dollars only) in an account that belongs to one of
our foreign customers who died along with his entire family a wife and two
children in November 1999 in an auto crash.

Since we heard of his death, we have been expecting his 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.It is in our banking guideline that if none of the relatives come up to
claim this fund after 6years of the death of the late customer,the fund will
be regarded as an unclaimed bill and will be transferred to the bank's
treasury account.


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;30 % for you
as foreign partner,65 % 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 with the following information:

1)Your private telephone and fax number
2.Your full name

Upon the receipt of this,i will inturn get back to you and give you the
mordalities for the bank to approve you as the next of kin.

Note also, this transaction must be kept because of its nature.I look
forward to receiving your prompt response.Please get back to me at my
private email:mrchrisgawab.com

Best Regards

Mr Chris Solomon

Please reply me at my email address:mrchris@gawab.com

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam