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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:

Fraud email example:

From: EARNEST LAWARENCE <earnestlawarence@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, 14 Oct 2017 08:34:37 +0100
Subject: IMPORTANT BUSINESS PROPOSAL

Attention Sir/Madam,

Firstly, I must solicit your confidence in this transaction, this is
by virtue of its nature as being utterly confidential and top secret.
Though I know that a transaction of this magnitude will make any one
apprehensive and worried, but I am assuring you that all will be well
at the end of the day. We have decided to contact you due to the
urgency of this transaction, as we have been reliably informed of it's
swiftness and confidentiality.

Let me start by first introducing myself properly to you. I am EARNEST
LAWRENCE, a Manager at the Access bank, Lagos. I came to know of you
in my private search for a reliable and reputable person to handle a
very confidential transaction which involves the transfer of a huge
sum of money to a foreign account requiring maximum confidence.

A foreigner, Late Engineer William Adams ,an oil Merchant
/contractor with the federal Government of Nigeria ,until his death
three years ago in a ghastly air crash, banked with us here at the
Access Bank, Lagos, and had a closing balance of USD$51.5M (Fifty-One
Million, Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) which the bank
now unquestionably expects to be claimed by any of his available
foreign next of kin or alternatively be donated to a discredited trust
fund for arms and ammunition at a military war college here in
Nigeria.

Fervent valuable efforts are being made by the Access Bank to get in
touch with any of late Engr. William Adams's next of kin (he had no
known wife and children) that the management under the influence of
our chairman, board of directors, Retired Major General Kalu Uke Kalu,
that an arrangement for the fund to be declared "UNCLIAMABLE " and
then be subsequently donated to the trust fund for Arms and Ammunition
which will further enhance the course of war in Africa and the world
in general.

In order to avert this negative development , myself and some of my
trusted colleagues in the bank now seek for your permission to have
you stand as late Engr.WILLIAMS ADAMSs next of kin so that the
fund,USD$51.5M, would be subsequently transferred and paid into your
bank account as the beneficiary next of kin. All documents and proves
to enable you get this fund have been carefully worked out and we are
assuring you a 100% risk free involvement. Your share would be 30% of
the total amount. 10% has been set aside for expenses, while the rest
would be for me and my colleagues for our involvement and we wish to
invest our shares in real estate /oil business in country.

If this proposal is OK by you and you do not wish to take advantage of
the trust we hope to bestow on you and your company, then kindly get
to me immediately via my e-mail furnishing me with your most
confidential telephone, fax and e-mail, so that i can forward to you
the relevant details of this transaction. Thank you in advance for
your anticipated
co-operation.



Regards.



EARNEST LAWRENCE.

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