419 scam: Western union Transfer <officcccccccccccccce.file@yahoo.pt> 2014 SCAM VICTIM COMPENSATION FROM THE (IMF) BENIN REPUBLIC

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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. )
- "wu-transfer@foxmail.com" (this email address has been used in a known scam)
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.
- +22999139024 (Benin, probably a prepaid mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: Western union Transfer <officcccccccccccccce.file@yahoo.pt>
Reply-To: Western union Transfer <wu-transfer@foxmail.com>
Date: Wed, 19 Nov 2014 15:00:20 +0000 (UTC)
Subject: 2014 SCAM VICTIM COMPENSATION FROM THE (IMF) BENIN REPUBLIC

2014 SCAM VICTIM COMPENSATION FROM THE (IMF) BENIN REPUBLIC
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is compensating all the scam victimsand your email address was found in the scam victim's list. This WesternUnionÂ®office has been mandated by the IMF to transfer your compensation toyou via Western UnionÂ® Money Transfer.
However, we have concluded to affect your own payment through WesternUnionÂ® Money Transfer, â‚¬5,000 twice daily until the total sum of Eurosâ‚¬4.8,000.00 is completely transferred to you. We can not be able tosend the payment with your email address alone; therefore we need yourinformation as to where we will be sending the funds, such as;
1. Full Name:2. Full Address:3. Citt,State,Zip code:4. Phone Number:5. Nationality:6. Sex:7. Occupation:Copy of your Identification: Drivers License OR International Passport:
Note that your payment is ready to be transferred to you immediately we receive above information from youÂ and within 72 hours if we did not hear from you, payment files will be returned to the IMFthis was the instruction given to us by the IMF. We will start the transfer as soon as we received your information.
Thanks,RegardDr Jerry Young Director Western UnionÂ®Money Transfer Head Office,Phone: +229 99139024Email wu-transfer@foxmail.com

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam