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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: ed mill <edmmmmml5@webmail.co.za>
Date: Wed, 28 Feb 2018 15:31:56 +0200
Subject: MR.EDWARD MILLS

MR.EDWARD MILLS
CONFIDENTIAL PROPOSAL
TEL: +27 78 312 3620
Email: edwardmills5467@gmail.com
Dear

I do not know you personally but I am writing this email to you based on
mutual trust and sincerity of my heart and absolute trust that you will
understand this matter and the need of assisting me over this issue, I
am sorry for sending you this message as an unsolicited mail. I have
directed this email to you alone without any third party so that the
confidentiality of this matter can be observed.

My name is Mr. Edward Mills I am the Director Foreign Exchange Control
Dept. based in Johannesburg, South Africa, It has been Six (6) years
ago, that most of the greedy African Politicians used our bank to
launder money overseas through the help of their Political advisers.

Most of the funds which they transferred out of the shores of Africa
were gold and diamonds money that was supposed to have been used to
develop the continent.

The Political advisers always inflated the amounts before transfer to
foreign accounts so I also used the opportunity to divert part of the
fund worth (USD$25,000,000.00) Twenty Five Million United State Dollars.
There is no official trace of how much was transferred, as all the
accounts used for such transfers at that particular time were closed
after transfer.

I handled the accounts of most of the politicians single handedly; I was
made to clear some of their banking records from the Bank files. They
could not keep track of all the money as it was too much for them to
control. As I am sending this message to you the (USD$25,000,000.00)
Twenty Five Million United State Dollars which is in an escrow transit
account belonging to no one in the bank, and now my bank is very anxious
to know the real beneficiary of the funds.

Immediately the fund has been successfully transfer into your account I
will be taking my retirement and come to your country for the sharing of
the fund, the fund will be shared in discussion of the percentage and
also 10% for the orphanages home and poor with less-privilege people. If
your country's by-laws allow foreign investment.

Please know that there is no one that is going to question you about the
fund if you will comply with me and follow my instruction which will
help us a lot to achieve this goal for everything is well secured.

I await your kind response so that I can give you all the required
details. Kindly reply back on the above email address or should you call
me on my private telephone line for further communication.

Yours faithfully


Mr. Edward Mills
(Director Foreign Exchange Control Dept)

Please contact me on my private above email address

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