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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.

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Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: Lawyer Emmanuel MAWUGNON <LawOfficeMawugnonAndPartners@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 9 Mar 2022 13:27:28 +0000
Subject: HELLO


Hello,
I sent you this letter a few weeks ago but I believe that due to the
coronavirus pandemic I have not received any response from you.
I am lawyer Emmanuel Mawugnon from the Bar of Kpalimé-Togo. I was the
personal lawyer of a citizen of your country, who sadly passed away last
year (May his soul rest in peace). I actually contacted you to request the
reclamation of funds worth approximately thirteen million eight hundred and
eighty thousand dollars, belonging to him and having been deposited in a
local bank before his sudden death. My request is mainly motivated by the
fact that you have the same surname as the deceased.
If you want to handle this honestly and without betraying my trust, please
do not hesitate to contact me for more details.
Greetings,

Anti-fraud resources: