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

Fraud email example:

From: "cliff alexander" <attorney_alexander63@hotmail.com>
Date: Fri, 12 Jan 2007 15:07:48 +0200
Subject: Attn: Harris

FROM: ATTORNEY: CLIFF ALEXANDER
TEL: +27-73-383-8516
NO 4 MELVILLE ROAD,
SANDTON CITY
JOHANNESBURG SOUTH AFRICA.

Attn: Harris
INHERITANCE.

It is my privilege to capture your names from the internet. My name is
ATTORNEY. CLIFF ALEXANDER a legal practitioner and the personal Attorney to
late Mr. Adams Harris,a national of your country who diedalong with his
wife and his Two sons in a ghastly motor accident along Port louis-Reduit
express in August 13, 2001.All the occupants in the vehicle lost their
lives.

I am convinced that it was the grace of God that made me to locate you.
My client was a successful and am accomplished family man, who made enough
fortune before his untimely death. Since then I had made several inquiries
through your Embassy to locate any of my clients extended relative but this
exercise has proved unsuccessful.

After several unsuccessful attempts, I decided totrace his relatives
through the Internet, to locate any member of hisfamily not much progress
was recorded. My late client was an influential wealthy businessman, a Gold
magnete here in South Africa and he left behind a deposit of Twenty Five
Million, Two Hundred Thousand United States Dollars($25,200,000.00usd) in
his domiciliary bank account in a commercial bank here in South Africa.

After the death of my client his bankers contacted me, as his Attorney to
provide his next of kin who should inherit his fortune. The board of
directors of his bank adopted a resolution and I was mandated to provide his
next of kin for the payment of this money within 28 working days or forfeit
the money to the bank as an abandoned property.

The bankers had planned to invoke the abandoned property decree of 1996 to
confiscate the funds after the expiration of the period given to me.

Despairing at the point of exhaustiveness,fortunately, I came across your
name , to my utmost amazement , you are nationals of the same country.
Convinced that you may be linked with my late client or that you might
provide clue to my search, I therefore,decided to contact you with these
facts before me because of the situation now .

By virtue of my closeness to the deceased and his immediate family, I am
very much aware of my client financial standing and the bank account he
operates.

I have reasoned very professionally and I feel it willbe legally proper to
present you as the next of kin of my deceased client,so that you can be paid
the funds left in his bank account, hence I contacted you. I seek your
consent to present you as the Next of Kin to the Deceased since you are at
an advantage as nationals from the same country, so that the proceeds of
this Bank Account valued at $25.2 Million Dollars can be paid to you.

We shall both share the funds. 50% to me and 45% to you, while 5% should be
for Expenses or Tax as your Government may require, I shall assemble all the
necessary Legal Documents that will be used to back up our claim .All I
require is your honest cooperation to enable us see this deal through.

I guarantee that this will be executed under alegitimate arrangement that
will protect you from any breach of law.

Please get in touch with me by telephone or email to enable us discuss
further.
Best Regards

Attorney. Cliff Alexander

_________________________________________________________________
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