Re: Off-topic: The Nigerian Scam

**"Peggy Riccio" PRICCIO@samhsa.gov>**

This afternoon the scam appeared on the American Horticultural Society's
list serve for youth gardening. It is a shame.

>>> lonrom@hevanet.com 07/01/02 01:02AM >>>
This is off-topic, but it affects all of us, so this is a public
service
message, of sorts.

As just about all of us have public e-mails, chances are good you've
all
gotten the "Nigerian Scam", as described below.

I've been getting these things since long before the internet, and it
is
getting worse all the time.  In one way, it's pathetic that a country
uses
thievery to finance themselves, but it's also scary because there is no
way
of knowing how much of this also goes to finance terrorism.
 There aren't many things we, as individuals, can do, but the website
below
will give you SOME things, most of which will help others build the
means to
eventually stop these people.

Nigeria - The 419 Coalition Website 
http://home.rica.net/alphae/419coal/ 

We Fight the Nigerian Scam.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Nigerian Scam Defined
A Five Billion US$ (as of 1996, much more now) worldwide Scam which has
run
since the early 1980's under Successive Governments of Nigeria. It is
also
referred to as "Advance Fee Fraud", "419 Fraud" (Four-One-Nine) after
the
relevant section of the Criminal Code of Nigeria, and "The Nigerian
Connection" (mostly in Europe). However, it is usually called plain
old
"419" even by the Nigerians themselves.

The Scam operates as follows: the target receives an unsolicited fax,
email,
or letter concerning Nigeria containing either a money laundering or
other
illegal proposal OR you may receive a Legal and Legitimate business
proposal
by normal means. Common variations on the Scam include "overinvoiced"
or
"double invoiced" oil or other supply and service contracts where your
Bad
Guys want to get the overage out of Nigeria; crude oil and other
commodity
deals; a "bequest" left you in a will; and "money cleaning" where your
Bad
Guy has a lot of currency that needs to be "chemically cleaned" before
it
can be used and he needs the cost of the chemicals. Or the victim will
just
be stiffed on a legitimate goods or services contract...the variations
are
very creative and virtually endless.

At some point, the victim is asked to pay up front an Advance Fee of
some
sort, be it an "Advance Fee", "Transfer Tax", "Performance Bond", or
to
extend credit, grant COD privileges, whatever. If the victim pays the
Fee,
there are many "Complications" which require still more advance
payments
until the victim either quits, runs out of money, or both. If the
victim
extends credit etc. he may also pay such fees ("nerfund" etc.), and
then he
is stiffed with NO Effective Recourse.

The Nigerian Scam is, according to published reports, the Third to
Fifth
largest industry in Nigeria. It is the 419 Coalition view that, in
effect,
the elites from which successive Governments of Nigeria have been drawn
ARE
the Scammers - therefore, victims have little recourse in this matter.
Monies stolen by 419 operations are almost Never Recovered from
Nigeria,
though there have been some indications of progress in anti-419
matters
under the Obasanjo government.

Most 419 letters and emails originate from or are traceable back to
Nigeria.
However, some originate from other nations, mostly also West African
nations
such as Ghana, Togo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast ( Cote D'Ivoire
)
etc. In most cases 419 emails from other nations are also Nigerian in
that
the "Home Office" of the 419ers involved is Nigeria regardless of the
source
of the contact materials. But there are occasionally some "local"
copycats
trying to emulate the success of the Nigerians. These folks tend not to
last
too long actually operating out of nations other than Nigeria, but they
do
try. 

419 COALITION DOES NOT NEED TO SEE A COPY OF THE LETTER, EMAIL, OR FAX
YOU
RECEIVED we've seen tens of thousands already. But please DO FOLLOW
THE
INSTRUCTIONS THAT APPLY TO YOU AS GIVEN IN THE WHAT TO DO SECTION
BELOW,
WHICH TELLS YOU WHERE TO SEND THE 419 MATERIALS YOU RECEIVED..

Please Read the ENTIRE site BEFORE contacting 419 Coalition for
information,
questions etc., as ALL AVAILABLE INFORMATION AND DATA IS ALREADY
SUMMARIZED
AND POSTED UP ON THIS SITE.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE FIVE RULES FOR DOING BUSINESS WITH NIGERIA

Courtesy of The 419 Coalition

1. NEVER pay anything up front for ANY reason.
2. NEVER extend credit for ANY reason.
3. NEVER do ANYTHING until their check clears.
4. NEVER expect ANY help from the Nigerian Government.
5. NEVER rely on YOUR Government to bail you out.

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