"I and my colleagues have in our possession instruments to transfer the sum of $35,500,000.00 into a foreign company's account in our favor.... We are therefore seeking your assistance in transferring this money to your account as it can only be remitted to a foreign account, and as civil servants, we are forbidden to operate foreign accounts.

"We shall commence the transfer of funds immediately, as soon as you send the following documents/information through the above fax number."

If you received the above email, would you:

A. send the information?

B. feel it was too good to be true?

C. ask for more information?

If you answered 'B', you are on your way to protecting yourself from being scammed. The email excerpt above (Another version can be read in its entirety Here.) is part of a scam called Advanced Fee Fraud (AFF) or 419, so named after the penal law in Nigeria that forbids this practice. The senders of these faxes and letters pose as Nigerian officials and are completely outfitted with forged government seals, stamps, and signatures.

(More recent Update coming out of China.)

This is serious business, and can lead to violence and death if the criminals can lure the victim to Nigeria. The Secret Service has an Alert Page because these criminals are so successful and prevalent.

These criminals have nothing to lose, and millions to gain. They take advantage of the fact that Nigerians speak English, the international language of business, and the country's vast oil and natural wealth, which attract many foreign companies and individuals with lucrative business opportunities. They capitalize on human greed and prey on the gambling mentality: 'If I can play a little longer, I'll recoup my losses.'

Recently, I talked with an American businessman, who has experienced how these criminals work firsthand. He agreed to an interview so that others can become aware of this particular scam. His name has been changed to insure his privacy.

P.G.: How were you approached by these "419-ers"?

Bill S.: By email. It was a blanket proposition that I assume went out to various businessmen all over the world. Yet, the wording was personal and conversational.

P.G.: What did it say?

Bill S.: It explained the opportunity to earn millions of dollars. All I had to do is send them my bank account number.

P.G.: What kind of proposition did they describe to you?

Bill S.: It was quite simple really. An oil refining company based in Australia did some work for the Nigerian government for $50,000,000. But the government had allotted almost $100,000,000 for the job. The Australian company would be paid their $50 million, but on paper it would look like they were paid the entire $100 million, when in actuality, the surplus would go to these Nigerian civil servants, the ones who sent the email.

They explained that civil servants cannot hold foreign bank accounts so they needed a bank account number from someone else.

P.G.: That's where you came in.

Bill S.: Yes, the money would be transferred into my account and they would collect their money from there.

P.G.: How would they collect their money from your account?

Bill S.: They said they would come to this country, and we'd go to my bank together. At that time I'd withdraw the funds for them.

P.G.: So how would you be earning 'millions'?

Bill S.: As their agent, I'd be entitled to a fee of 10% of the surplus amount. Rounded off, it came to about $12 million.

P.G.: When did you first get an inkling that you weren't dealing with a legitimate business opportunity?

Bill S.: Immediately. My instincts told me 'this was too good to be true'.

P.g.: And yet you responded to them, why?

Bill S.: At that time, I didn't know about any 419 scam, and I thought 'what if' it was legitimate? If I was doing them a service, they weren't going to get any money out of me, anyway. So I decided to answer them.

P.G.: So what did you say?

Bill S.: I told them straight out that I was not going to pay out of my pocket for doing them this service. I sent them my bank's address and my account number. Then, I told them that they should show me a sign of good faith and send me a check for $100,000. After all, we were talking millions here. They got back to me and told me that they weren't sure I understood the nature of this deal. Then, they proceeded to explain it in greater detail.

P.G.: What kind of instructions did they give you?

Bill S.: They stressed secrecy and confidentiality. I wasn't to refer to our deal in an email, only over the phone, or fax.

P.G.: Why is that?

Bill S.: Ostentatiously, I suppose, they didn't want their superiors to get wind of the deal, either to stop it or get in on it. But really, they were just covering their butts. If the authorizes wanted to investigate their activities, the phone and fax are hard to trace.

P.G.: So you talked to these criminals personally?

Bill S.: We talked to each other every day for about 2 weeks. They wanted to keep me abreast of the proceedings, and prepare the documentation for such a large transference of funds.

P.G.: Did you have a problem with that?

Bill S.: Yeah, I did. It was time-consuming. Nigeria's time is so different from ours; they'd call me in the middle of the night. Our life was put on hold 'cause I'd have to be home at a certain time, stop whatever I was doing to receive their call.

P.G.: So why go through all the trouble.

Bill S.: Curiosity. I KNEW for a fact that they weren't going to get ANY money from me no matter how they might have sweetened the pot. So I wanted to find out how far they were willing to extend themselves for me to do this service for them. Logically, they should have been willing to bend over backwards for millions of dollars.

P.G.: So did they keep you informed?

Bill S.: (Laughs) That's what they said that these communications were for. In reality, they were trying to nurture me, hook me, convince me with the "it's-necessary-to-spend-a-dollar-to-make-a-thousand" mentality.

Understand, they're smooth talking salesmen and they use every trick in the book from guilt to greed to get you to think like they do. They know how to play the human mind.

So, for every question and/or obstacle I tossed in their path, they had an answer and a document to back it up.

P.G. What kind of obstacles?

Bill S.: The legality of it, for one thing.

P.G.: How did they answer that one?

Bill S.: They knew the art of namedropping. They knew the right agencies. They stressed that this wasn't laundered drug money. Look at all the documentation they sent to back their scheme. (pulls out a sheaf of papers) This document is from The Central Bank of Nigeria, look at the top of this fax.

P.G.: It says it came from the Bank.

Bill S.: Here's one from Federal Ministry of Justice to show that we had a legitimate contract, a Certificate of Incorporation from the Federal Republic of Nigeria to show that I was incorporated in that country since 1995, a foreign payment approval certificate from the Federal Ministry of Finance to show the business I've done with Nigeria. This one shows where the money came from and where it was going. You can see that this is a very elaborate scheme with signatures and seals.

P.G.: What else did they talk about during the communiqués?"

Bill S.: They said that we should get to know each other in case someone asks about our business relationship.

P.G.: What do you mean?

Bill S.: They wanted to know more about me, personally. They wanted to establish a 'bond' or something. For example, I told them that I'd been married 10 years and had a boy and a girl. That's not the truth, but the next 'person' I talked to was a man who'd been married 10 years and also had a boy and girl. They would call me 'my brother', "Bill, my brother... we've got to do this or that".

They would also try to get me excited about how close the date of the transaction was, and get me thinking about how much I wanted this money, how much I needed it. They suggested that I send the banker a gift of a few thousand dollars to speed things along, and that this was a regular business practice. They are very good.

P.G.: Does that mean you were considering the package they were trying to sell you?

Bill S.: No. Because I had made up my mind that I wasn't going to spend anything. But it did get me to thinking how potent their line would be for someone else looking to invest. It's scary.

P.G.: How long did they keep this up?

Bill S. Let's see, about 2 weeks. On Tuesday they told me that the transfer would take place a week from Friday. So over the course of about 10 days they tried to cement our 'friendship'.

P.G.: Were the funds transferred on that Friday?

Bill S.: (laughs) No they weren't transferred. The Thursday before the deal was to go through, they called to tell me that they needed my signature on some papers, and that just as soon as they had it, the funds would be transferred.

P.G.: What did they suggest?

Bill S.: A few things. They said that a courier could bring the papers to the U.S. for a fee of $5000. OR I could give their lawyer power of attorney and then HE could sign them. OR I could travel to Nigeria and sign them. If I chose the latter, they would provide me with a visa and make sure I'd be admitted into the country without any hassle.

I reminded them again that I wasn't going to spend any money. They said they'd be willing to spot me $2500 and that I could pay them out of my share when the deal went through. I guess they figured I'd do anything to try to raise the money since we were talking millions of dollars here.

P.G.: What did you say to that?

Bill S.: I told them to spot me for the whole $5000, and I'd pay them when the deal went through.

P.G.: They must not have liked that very much.

Bill S.: Well, they reminded me that civic servants don't make very much in Nigeria and that we were in this together. You know, the guilt thing.

P.G.: What about the other option, the power of attorney?

Bill S.: I said I'd have to talk to the man first. And as it happened he was 'in the building' and I got to talk to him right away. When he got to the phone, he sounded suspiciously like 'my brother' who had been married for 10 years and had a boy and a girl. He told me his fee would be $40,000.

The only other option then, was to go to Nigeria, which continues to be the best option for them. They would expedite my paperwork and get me into the country. Once there, they would hold me up for more money, and not allow me to leave until I gave it to them.

P.G.: Yes, at the website, I read about the violence they procure at that time. So what did you tell them?

Bill S.: What I said from the beginning. I'm not paying for my service. I assumed that the deal was off. But they called me the next day. I told them that I wanted to see the transfer of funds first, and then we'll talk about the $5000.

P.G.: Did you ever hear from them again?

Bill S.: For about a month I received faxes with enticing tidbits to get me to contact them again. One fax said that they had a prospect in Germany ready to take my place if I didn't act soon. One fax said that I should keep a record of all my expenses so that they can reimburse me.

P.G.: How can we protect ourselves from this scam and others like it?

Bill S.: Number ONE and this is so important: If it sounds too good to be true, it is. Investigate. Question. And don't think you look stupid or untrusting. Don't let ANY human emotion--greed or guilt--enter the picture. Go with your gut. If something--anything--just doesn't seem right, STOP, stop everything.

P.G.: Thank you, Bill S., for your candor and taking the time to inform us first hand how this scam works.

Bill S.: You're welcome.

There's a wealth of information and personal experiences on the web about this scam, and yet they can still operate. Statistics show that victims of scams go against their better judgment. If your instincts tell you that it's too good to be true, LISTEN! They tell you the truth.

Links for more information:

4-1-9 Google Search | The Secret Service's Alert Page | 419Eaters | 419 Coalition