419 scam: "Mr. Kenneth Burns" <mr.kenneth1@9.cn> ****PLEASE I NEED YOUR HELP ASAP****

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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:
- ",000,000" (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)
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr. Kenneth Burns" <mr.kenneth1@9.cn>
Reply-To: mr.kennethburns@btinternet.com
Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2011 22:01:14 +0700
Subject: ****PLEASE I NEED YOUR HELP ASAP****

Dear,

I write to you as a matter of uttermost urgency in respect of a
business transaction which I trust will be of interest to you.It
pertains certain accounts which in the wake of the September 11
attacks were "MARKED" by the Counter- terrorism unit of the FBI, these
accounts are belonging to key Arab businessmen and influential players
in the middle-east, these accounts have been a subject of
investigation and as since been cleared by the FBI and I have been
entrusted with the duty of returning these account to the rightful
owners but unfortunately a lot of these people are nowhere to be found.

Should you be interested, my proposal is for you to be the sole
beneficiary of these funds which is running into $126,000,000 USD.
This partnership is to be on 50%-50% basis.

Pleases contact me immediately if you are interested with your name,
address and relevant bio-data.

Yours faithfully,
Mr. Kenneth Burns.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam