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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)
  • "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "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)
  • "contact me immediately" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
  • "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 next of kin scam.

Fraud email example:

From: <mromaru@ciudad.com.ar>
Date: Sat, 17 Jan 2009 06:04:42 -0200
Subject: =?iso-8859-1?Q?TREAT=20AS=20URGENT=20AND=20CONFIDENTIAL.?=

TREAT AS URGENT AND CONFIDENTIAL.
From The Desk Of Mr Omaru Ahmed.
Bill And Exchange Manager
Bank Of Africa
Ouagadougou-Burkina Faso.
Tel. 0022678248322.

Dear Friend,

I am the manager of bill and exchange at the foreign remittance department of BANK OF AFRICA.I am writting to seek your coperation over this business deal.In my department, I discovered an abandoned sum of $31.8million USD (Thirty one Million eight hundred thousand United States Dollars) only, in an acount that belongs to one of our foreign customers who died along with his entire family in a plane crash that took place in Kenya,East Africa,the Late DR. GEORGE BRUMLEY,a citizen of Atlanta, United States of America but naturalised in Burkinafaso, West Africa and contractor with ECOWAS,(ECONOMIC COMMUNITY OF WEST AFRICAN STATES).

Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his next of kin to come over and claim his money because it cannot be release dunless somebody applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as indicated in our banking guidelines but unfortunately, all his supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at the plane crash leaving nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this discovery that i now decided to make this businness proposal to you and release the money to you via your foreign bank account as the next of kin or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent disbursement since nobody is coming for it and this money could go into the Bank treasury as unclaimed Bill.

The Banking law and guideline here stipulate that if such money remained unclaimed after 7 years, the money will be transfered into the Bank's treasury as unclaimed fund.The request for your assistance and maximum co-operation as a foreign citizen to stand as the next of kin in this business is occasioned by the fact that the deceased customer was a foreigner and a Burkinabe cannot stand as next of kin to a foreigner.40 % of this money will be for you as my foreign partner,in respect to the provision of a foreign account. 5 % will be set aside for expenses incured during the business and 55 % would be for me.There after I will come over to your country for disbursement of the fund according to the percentages indicated.

Therefore to enable the immediate transfer of this fund to you as arranged,you must apply first to the bank as the relation or next of kin to the deceased,indicating your claims and wherein the money will be remitted. Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or email the text of application which you will fill and forward to the office of the foreign remittance director of the bank of africa. I will not fail to bring to your notice that this transaction is strictly confidential and i will use my position in this Bank to effect a hitch free transfer of the fund.You should contact me immediately as soon as you receive this letter on my private phone number: 0022678248322. Trusting to hear from you immediately.

Please , visit the website below for more informations about the Plane Crash and the tragic death of the deceased and his entire family, Late DR. GEORGE BRUMLEY.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/africa/07/20/kenyacrash/index.html

Yours Faithfully,
Mr Omaru Ahmed

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam