joewein.net   joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days
  jwSpamSpy

Home
About Us
Spam
419/Nigeria
Fraud
Contact

"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:

Fraud email example:

From: "DR USMAN ALIU" <dr_usman_aliu74@ig.com.br>
Reply-To: nnpc_org_dr_usman@live.com
Date: Sat, 12 Jul 2008 05:27:11 -0700
Subject: Attention,


Attention,

Firstly, I must solicit your strictest confidentiality in this transaction.
This is by virtue of its nature as being utterly CONFIDENTIAL and "TOP
SECRET." Though I know that a transaction of this magnitude will make anyone
apprehensive and worried, but I am assuring you that all will be well at the
end of the day. We have decided to contact you first by your email due to
the urgency of this transaction, as we have been reliably informed that it
will take at least two to three weeks for a normal post to reach you. So we
decided it is best using the email bearing in mind that it is not the very
best for a transaction of this magnitude.

Let me start by first introducing myself properly to you. I am Dr Usman
Aliu, a senior official in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and I
head a Three-man tender Board in charge of Contracts Awards and payment
Approvals. I came to know of you in my search for a reliable and reputable
person to handle a very confidential business transaction which involves the
transfer of a huge sum of money to a foreign account requiring maximum
confidence. I and my colleagues are top officials of the Federal Government
Contract Review Panel. Our duties include evaluation, vetting, approval for
payment of contract jobs done for the NNPC, etc. In order to commence this
business, we solicit for your assistance to enable us transfer into your
account the said funds. The source of these funds is as follows: During the
last military regime here in Nigeria, this committee awarded a contract of
US$400,000,000.00 (Four Hundred Million United States Dollars) to five
construction firms on behalf of the Petroleum Ministry for the supply,
construction and installation of Oil Pipeline from Warri to PortHarcourt.

During this process my colleagues and I decided amongst ourselves to
deliberately over-inflate the total contract sum to US$461,500,000.00 (Four
Hundred and sixty One Million Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars)
with the main intention of sharing the remaining sum of US$61,500,000.00
(sixty One Million Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) amongst
ourselves. The Federal Government of Nigeria has since approved the sum of
US$461,500,000.00 (Four Hundred and sixty One Million, Five Hundred Thousand
United States Dollars) for us as the contract sum, and the sum of
US$400,000,000.00 (Four Hundred Million United States Dollars) has also been
paid to the foreign contractors concerned as contract Entitlements for the
contract done. We are now left with US$61,500,000.00 balance in the account
which we intend to transfer abroad into a safe and reliable account to be
disbursed amongst ourselves, but by virtue of our positions as civil
servants and members of this panel, we cannot do this by ourselves, as we
are prohibited by the `Code of Conduct Bureau´ (Civil Service Laws) from
opening / operating foreign accounts in our names, making it impossible for
us to acquire the money in our names.

I have, therefore, been mandated as a matter of trust by my colleagues in
the panel to look for an overseas partner into whose account we would
transfer the sum of US$61,500,000.00 (sixty One Million Five Hundred
Thousand United States Dollars), hence we are writing you this letter. My
colleagues and I have agreed that if your company can act as the beneficiary
of this funds on our behalf, you or your company will retain 30% of the
total amount of US$61,500,000.00 (sixty one Million Five Hundred Thousand
United States Dollars), while 60% will be for us (members of this panel) and
the remaining 10% will be used in offsetting all debts/expenses incurred
(both local and foreign) in the cause of this transfer.

Needless to say, the trust reposed on you at this juncture is enormous. In
return we demand your complete honesty and trust. You must however, know
that this transaction will be strictly based on the following terms and
conditions as we have stated below, as we have heard confirmed cases of
business associates running away with funds kept in their custody when it
finally arrive their accounts. A very good and recent example is the one of
Mr. Peter Hopwood, the President of Mileage Trading and Investment Company
at Number 121, west 55th Street, 21st Floor, New York 10022, and former
Chairman of OMPADEC (Mr. Patrick Apia), who we were reliably informed that
after the agreement between both partners in which he was to take 15% of the
money, while the remaining 85% for Nigerian Officials.

With all the required documents signed, the money was duly transferred into
his account, only to be disappointed on their arrival in New York and were
informed that Mr. Peter Hopwood was no longer on that address, while his
telephone and fax numbers have been re-allocated to somebody else. This was
how they lost US$18.5 Million to Mr. Hopwood. This is a very recent story
here in my country and everybody is aware of this, some of the officials
decided to cry out and face the law, because they felt they had lost too
much to a stranger, while the Chairman of OMPADEC (Mr.PatrickOpia) is hiding
in a foreign country. So right now we are Taking all precautionary measures
to guard against re-occurrence of such act in our case. This is why we have
decided that this transaction will be based completely on the following:
(a). our conviction of your transparent honesty and diligence. (b). that you
would treat this transaction with utmost secrecy and confidentiality. (c).
that upon receipt of the funds, you will promptly release our share (60%) on
demand after you have removed your 30% and all expenses have been settled.
(d). you must be ready to produce us with enough information about yourself
to put our minds at rest.

Please, note that this transaction is 100% legal and risk free and we hope
to conclude the business in Seven Bank working days from the date of receipt
of the necessary information and requirement from you. Acknowledge the
receipt of this letter using this email address I will bring you into the
complete picture of the transaction when I have heard from you. Your Urgent
response will be highly appreciated as we are already behind schedule for
this financial quarter. Thank you and God bless.

Yours faithfully
Dr Usman Aliu

+234 70 3030 7928

Anti-fraud resources: