419 scam: "Mr. Francois Bittrand" <infofiunits@gmail.com> UNITED NATIONS OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL OVERSIGHT SERVICES

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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:
- "fbi washington" (This name is often mentioned in money recovery scams (re-scam): the real FBI will not tell you to contact some email address. If you are in any doubt, contact an FBI field office via www.fbi.gov. )
- "cotonou" (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.

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr. Francois Bittrand" <infofiunits@gmail.com>
Reply-To: "Mr. Francois Bittrand" <unitednations.interpol@outlook.com>
Date: Thu, 17 Sep 2015 20:40:44 +0900 (JST)
Subject: UNITED NATIONS OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL OVERSIGHT SERVICES

UNITED NATIONS OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL OVERSIGHT SERVICES
Internal Audit, Monitoring, Consulting And Investigations Division
Address: 01 B.P. 2289 Recette Principale Cotonou Republic of Benin

Sir,

I received your payment file and wish to inform you that since the little days I have spent in this country, Cotonou, Benin Republic there are a lot of people who are interested in confiscating your fund into their personal account because they know too well that you can't be able to come to Benin Republic to claim your USD5.5 Million Approved Payment. This impostor, Richard Graves with his Cohorts came to the Central Bank of Benin head office, with a Funeral picture saying that you died of Car Accident and before you died, you made him your rightful Next of Kin.

We just received information from the FBI Washington to make sure that you confirm your fund in your account before I return back to New York by Friday next week. We do not want anything that will jeopardize your chances of receiving your funds, so you are required to urgently get back to me with your full details. Urgently reply back with your full details so that I will forward it to the Central Bank of Benin to process your payment through ATM CARD or CASHIER CHECK for immediate payment.

Lastly, if you really wish to receive your fund, you have to follow my directives and STOP every communication you have with any body and the other two parties who are requesting you to send them money because they are not genuine but only scammers looking for a way to scam you.

Urgently get back to me with your full details so that I will process the Notarization for your fund to be paid either by ATM CARD or wire transfer as the case may be without further delay.

Sincerely yours,

Mr. Francois Bittrand
United Nations Overseights Services
Interpol, Benin Republic

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam