419 scam: "Williams Jeff"<williamsjeff099@googlemail.com> RE:REPLY

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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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

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

This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "share the funds upon agreed terms" (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)
This email message is a next of kin scam.

Fraud email example:

From: "Williams Jeff" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <williamsjeff09@googlemail.com>
Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 16:18:17 +0200
Subject: RE:REPLY

>From Desk of Williams Jeff
Principal Attorney
Attorney Service Group and Solicitors
571 Lea Bridge Road
London E10 6AJ
United Kingdom

Attn:

Compliments of the day to you. I must solicit your confidentiality and assure you that I am contacting you in good faith and this proposal will be of mutual benefit. I am Williams Jeff (Esq.), a legal Practitioner. My client late Mr. Andrew was killed with his entire family in fatal auto crash, sparing none of their lives, some years ago.

Before his death, I assisted him in the deposit of some funds with a bank for safekeeping. The funds have remained unclaimed since his death, and such unclaimed funds are appropriated and returned to the treasury as a matter of policy. Considering the lack of success in my bid to locate any of his relatives for over a year now, I hereby solicit your consent to enable me present you as the Next of Kin to my deceased client.

I am contacting you for this sole reason and strongly believe that the bank does not deserve to inherit the funds. These reasons led to my resolve to claim the funds, which was why I contacted you. With your permission, I will proceed to establish you as the next of kin/Beneficiary to my late client. As soon as this is done, you will then give instructions to the bank, to transfer the deposited funds into another account you will provide, after which we shall then share the funds upon agreed terms.

When I receive your response, I will provide you with further details.

I await your reply,

Williams Jeff. Esq.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam