419 scam: "Ambassador Terence"<ambassadorterencepmcculley.ng01@yahoo.com> READ CAREFULLY AND GET BACK TO ME 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:
- "western union" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "money gram" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "trunk box" (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)
- "trunk boxes" (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)
- "united state of america" (this email uses bad English)
- "abuja" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
- +2347085779173 (Nigeria, prepaid mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: "Ambassador Terence" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <ambassadorterencepmcculley01@rediffmail.com>
Date: Sun, 23 Jun 2013 05:28:48 -0700
Subject: READ CAREFULLY AND GET BACK TO ME ASAP !!!

UNITED STATE OF AMERICA AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA,
11 GWARI GARIKI ROAD ABUJA,
ABUJA, NIGERIA.

HELLO BENEFICIARY,

I SHALL BE COMING TO YOUR COUNTRY FOR AN OFFICIAL MEETING NEXT WEEK AND I WILL BE BRINGING YOUR PACKAGED FUND WORTH OF $6.5 MILLION USD IN TRUNK BOXES ALONG WITH ME.THIS TIME I WILL NOT GO THROUGH CUSTOMS CHECKS BECAUSE AS AM A US AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA,I HAVE THE AMBASSADORIAL IMMUNITY TO PASS THROUGH CUSTOM SCRUTINY.AS SOON AS I AM THROUGH WITH THE MEETING I SHALL THEN PROCEED TO YOU ADDRESS IN YOUR COUNTRY.(SEND YOUR FULL INFORMATION WITH YOUR CELL PHONE NUMBER,THE ADDRESS WHERE YOU WANT ME TO BRING THE PACKAGE AS YOUR FUND WILL BE PACKAGED IN TRUNK BOXES AND REGISTERED THAT IT CONTAINS OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS)

YOU HAVE REALLY PAID SO MUCH FOR THIS DELIVERY,THAT MAKES ME WONDER WHY,WHEN YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO KNOW THE RIGHT PEOPLE TO CONTACT.YOU ARE A VERY LUCKY PERSON BECAUSE I SHALL BE BRINGING IT MYSELF AND THERE IS NOTHING ANYONE CAN DO ABOUT IT.YOUR PACKAGED FUND IN TRUNK BOXES($6.5 MILLION USD ) MUST BE REGISTERED AS AN AMBASSADORIAL PACKAGE FOR ME TO DEFEAT ALL ODDS AND THE COST OF REGISTERING IT AT THE IRS HEAD OFFICE IS $205.THE FEE MUST HAVE TO BE PAID IN THE NEXT TWO WORKING DAYS.YOU ARE TO SEND THE REGISTRATION/BROKERAGE FEE VIA WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER SO THAT ALL NECESSARY ARRANGEMENT CAN BE MADE AND CONCLUDED BEFORE TIME WILL BE AGAINST YOU.

GET BACK TO ME WITH YOUR FULL INFORMATION AS SOON AS YOU RECEIVE THIS ELECTRONIC MESSAGE SO THAT I CAN SEND TO YOU THE INFORMATION ON WHICH YOU ARE TO SEND THE FEE VIA WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER OR MONEY GRAM.

I EXPECT YOU TO COMPLY WITHIN THE TIME SCHEDULE BEFORE THEN SO THAT THE DELIVERY CAN BE COMPLETED.IF YOU DO NOT COMPLY,THEN IT WILL NOT BE MY FAULT IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE YOUR PACKAGE.

MY IDENTITY CAN BE VERIFIED BY SIMPLY CLICKING ON THE URL LINK BELOW : http://nigeria.usembassy.gov/biography.html

AMBASSADOR TERENCE P. MCCULLEY.
+234 7085779173

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam