Avoid scammers

The scammers who send these fraudulent letters are criminals. They want your money and use force to get it, if necessary. The Secret Service has a warning about that here. I found those stories hard to believe until a friend recently contacted me. One of her friends, let me call her S, was killed in Lagos, Nigeria, when she was trying to help a “dying man” who had contacted her.

This is what my friend told me:

It all started about 3 months ago, she was chatting like everything we do on Yahoo Messenger. I was in Miami at the time, so we were both chatting. She told me that she will go to Lagos for her modeling program, since she was a model and worked for a TV channel. She started receiving mail from Lagos from a guy named “Garuba”. She used to send him emails saying that she is a severe cancer patient and she needs 1000 dollars for her urgent surgery. S she told me that she received at least 10 emails from him in that month. Since she was supposed to go to Lagos, she thought it would be nice to help someone who needs an operation for a deadly disease like cancer. I remember that I was the only one who left her at the airport when she was leaving for Lagos. Everything was fine for a month. She used to call him once a week and it used to sound very normal. In her last call she told me that she had helped him (a scammer whom she didn’t know) with 1000 dollars for her surgery, and that was normal. But she suddenly started asking for more and more money, which she refused to give. She sent me an email saying “He abuses her on the phone.” I told her to leave Lagos soon.

After that I never spoke to her. I tried to accept the help of the Nigerian police but those 419 scammers bribed them and the police did not take my case. As you suggested, I contacted the Embassy in Nigeria for S. I received the worst news of my life: she is gone. The Nigerian police admitted her to the hospital in the city of Lagos. The Embassy found news about her. Local doctors said that she passed away after being taken to the hospital. Police assume she was beaten to death. Doctors say that she was also raped. According to DNA reports, she was brutally raped by more than 4 men and beaten to death.

I need you to put this on your site so everyone knows that “Even people who ask for money for their treatment are scammers.” This is the main goal that we have to show people. If you put this on your site, people will realize that “sickness is also a reason scammers use to mess up girls’ lives by raping them and also scamming money, and everyone notices.”

Email from a stranger

Did you get a letter from a complete stranger promising you millions? Or did you get a million dollar offer while going online?
I have received many of these letters, and they are all full of lies. Below is an example of them.

Maybe your letter was similar to one of mine?

Perhaps you received a letter telling you that you won a lottery that you had never heard of?
– Or maybe someone was offered an easy job from home, where you have to receive money on behalf of a company?
If the scammers were unsuccessful in making you a victim, they could try again with the use of a compensation letter.

message example

From: mscorp lott [[email protected]]

Sent: Sat 05/26/2007 15:52

Office of the Manager of the Foreign Service

Universal Building, 132-133

Park Hurst, Balfour-Unit 1440

Johannesburg, Gauteng 2001

South Africa.

Warning: our honorable winner

from international manager email promotions/prizes department, global mega lottery, microsoft corporation in conjunction with world lottery fifa worldcup south africa 2010

you are the winner no: 15

re: prize winning email notification

global mega lottery and microsoft corporation management worldwide together with the 2010 fifa world cup south africa organizing committee are pleased to inform you that you are the winner of our annual microsoft/global mega lotto held in south africa being hosted by of the event for this This year’s Mega Jackpot lottery winning show was held on May 25, 2007 at Nelson Mandela Square-Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Your email address was attached to our raffle with the serial number s/n-00168 and you got the lucky numbers 87-43-25-22-10-3 and consequently won the second category of the raffle . Therefore, it has been approved for a lump sum of $1,000,000.00 (one million US dollars) payable in cash only credited to file ref. No: 56475600545 188 and bacth no: 5368/02 this is for the total cash prize of $125,000,000.00 (one hundred and twenty-five million US dollars shared between one hundred and twenty-five (125) lucky international winners in the first and second categories respectively.

All entrants were selected from websites around the world through our Microsoft computerized ballot system drawn from ten million consistent email users around the world with each continent participating as part of the “Email Promotions Program”. International “Electronic” held annually for our prominent microsoft users around the world, and to encourage the bid for the 2010 fifa world cup south africa.

Your fund has been secured and you will be paid by telegraphic transfer
(tt) through our claims agent in Africa (details below).

Name: attorney smith thambo esq.

lawyer at law

email: [email protected]

phone: +27 733367914

Note: Your email address should be used in all correspondence with your Claims Officer for reference purposes, using the contact details listed in this document. Quote your winning numbers and no. 19. As part of our security protocol, please also quote this security code: msgml/jan/xx207 to your claims agent to prevent misappropriation or scam.

Remember, all prize money must be claimed within 14 days of receipt of this notice or forfeited to the South African government.

Congratulations once again from all the management and staff of the global mega lottery, microsoft corporation and the organizing committee of the fifa world cup south africa 2010 to all of our lucky winners this year.

To be honest,

maria nkosi

our sponsors: main sponsors;

global mega lottery, winikhaya south africa lottery, microsoft corporation, fifa, emirates airlines, south african airlines, old mutual insurance, chelsea fc, benita group, lucin group, julius berger, samsung etc…

Special thanks to:

Microsoft Corporation UK, Microsoft Corporation Africa, Microsoft Corporation USA, Microsoft Corporation Asia.

Please endeavor to email your claims agent with the required information below:

1. Full names:

2. Country:

3. Sex:

4.Age:

5. Occupation:

6. Telephone number:

7. Lot number:

8. Address: