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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

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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:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "foreign remittance manager" (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)
  • "top secret" (scammers urge victims to keep the transaction secret because they don't want anyone to point out to them that it is a scam)
  • "god-fearing " (scammers in West Africa like to use religious phrases)
• This email message is a next of kin scam.

Fraud email example:

From: "musa hamza" <dr_hamza01@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: dr_hamza_01@yahoo.fr
Date: Thu, 10 Jan 2008 11:04:26 +0000
Subject: TREAT AS URGENT:

DR HAMZA OF
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (ANNEX)
BILL AND EXCHANGE DEPARTMENT,
OFFSHORE OFFICE,OUAGADOUGOU,BURKINA-FASO.


Dear friend,
I got your e-mail contacts from computerised datas after my extensive
search via the website for a God-fearing and trust-worthy person to bestow
this transaction which is the only hope of our survival into his or her
hands.
When i got your address,I prayed and meditated fervently over it and i
commited it into the hands of God that you should be the rightful person to
help us out before I made up my decision to contact you.
My name is DR HAMZA of the Bill and Exchange Manager of the African
Development Bank,Ouagadouguo Burkina Faso.
In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of USD$30.000.000 (THIRTY
MILLION U.S.A DOLLARS). In an account that belongs to this our foreign
customer who died along with his wife and and children in the plane crash.
Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his next of
kin to come over and claim his money because we cannot release it unless
somebody applies for it as the next of kin or relation to the deceased, as
indicated in our banking guidelines but unfortunately we learnt that all his
supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him in the plane crash
leaving nobody behind for the claim.
It is therefore upon this discovery that I decided to make this business
proposals to you and release the money to you as next of kin or relation to
the deceased for safety and subsequent disbursement since nobody is coming
for it because I don't want this money to go into the bank treasury as
unclaimed Bill. The banking law and guidelines here stipulates that if such
money remains unclaimed after five years, the money will be transferred into
the bank treasury as unclaimed fund.
The request of foreigner in this transaction is necessary because our late
customer was a foreigner and a Burkinabe cannot stand as next of kin to a
foreigner,I agree that 49%of this money will be for you as foreigner partner
in respect to the provision of a foreign account.2%will be set aside for
expenses incurred during the business and 49% would be for me , after which
I shallvisit your country for disbursement according to the percentages
indicated.
Therefore to enable the immediate transfer of this fund to you as I have
arranged,you will furnished me with a good receiving account details where
the money will be transfered,your private tel and fax number for easy
communication.
Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or e-mail a text of
the application which you shall retype and fax to our foreign remittance
manager,for easy execution of the transaction.
I will not fail to bring to your notice that this transaction is 100%
hitch-free on both side. As all required arrangement have been made for the
transfer and more so all the documents backing this claim will be supplied
to you after you might have applied.
Please I would like you you keep this transaction confidential and as a top
secret as you may wish to know that I am a senior Bank official.
Trusting to hear from you immediately.
Yours Sincerely,
DR HAMZA (MR)

_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam