Old-style Nigerian scam: via fax
30 Apr 2005Amazing: I just got my first Nigerian (419) scam via FAX! In these days of practically free email sending, you have to admire someone who goes the extra mile and pays for sending faxes. A handwritten letter would have made me feel even more special, but it’s a start.
A Mister Victor Abbor (vicabbor2@yahoo.com or vicabbor@sify.com) from Lagos has picked me as a candidate for transfering a substantial amount of money ($17.6 mio), formerly belonging to Mr. Akbar Ali, who unfortunately died in the Benin plane crash on Dec 25, 2003. I have to pose as a relative for Mr. Ali (I do have a slight tan from one week in Portugal, so I should pass easily for an African) In return, he would only take a meager 65% and leave me with the remaining 35% (what, no taxes?) which amounts to … $6.16 mio, or € 4.7 mio. A day’s work for a day’s pay.
Victor refers to articles on CNN.com: Benin crash, and Pravda.ru: Bloody Christmas. Obviously, the fact he knows these articles should be enough proof that he is indeed capable of touching the money. Funnily enough, just after asking my personal details, he signs the letter as Paul Udo. I’m confused now. Is Udo Abbor’s secretary or something? While “Victor Abbor” has no Google hits yet, “Paul Udo” does have prior activity: on nigerian419fraud.freeserve.co.uk he appears to have promised 30% of 32 mio to someone else. I suddenly don’t feel that special anymore.
The fax is supposedly sent from +234-7594683 (+234 is Nigeria’s country prefix)… Nah, I don’t think I’m gonna do it. If any one is interested in doing business with Victor/Paul, just let me know. Just browse through The Spamletters first to get a feel of how to do business the Nigerian way.