Kevin Wessell Warns of Rip Off Scam Perpetrated by Email

Feb. 19, 2010 - PRLog -- The company of which I am a part forms corporations, LLCs and bank accounts locally and internationally. We have many people calling our offices claiming to have sudden access to great riches from an unexpected source and would like a company and bank account in which to place the funds. Some say they won the lottery in the United Kingdom. Others call and tell us that they have a large inheritance, in the millions of dollars, from a long-lost relative. Alternatively, the callers say they will be receiving funds from a shunned member of a Nigerian royal family who needs to quickly transfer money to someone else and escape the country. Incidentally, most clients inform us that the funds are coming from Nigeria. Some say the funds are coming from the UK, South Africa or other location.

A common thread is that initial contact is by email. Scammers in countries such as Nigeria send millions of emails to unsuspecting email recipients. A few of the individuals who receive the emails are trusting souls in financial need. Sometimes people believe what they want to believe in spite of the fact that common sense would make the vast majority of us raise a suspecting eyebrow.

A typical question our representatives ask, depending on the proposal, is, "Well, did you ever play the lottery in the UK?" The answer is typically, "No." It is the same with the inheritance swindle.  None of the callers were aware of the alleged funds until receiving the unsolicited email.

As the scam continues, the sender of the email sends what appear to be very official-looking documents from banks and/or government agencies. At this point, the victim is already mentally spending the money and feeling the upcoming relief from financial stress.  
Once the victim is caught, hook, line, and sinker, the perpetrator of the rip off lowers the boom. In order to release the millions of dollars to the victim’s account, the government, or some other agency, requires $8,000 (or some other amount) of tax to be paid. The perpetrator gives wiring instructions to an account owned by the perpetrator, himself.  Once the $8,000 is received, the perpetrator claims that the payment was received too late. Now, another $4,000 is due in addition to a $6,000 release fee. So, the scam continues with one fee after another going to the con artist.

One elderly lady had already transferred over $120,000 to some perpetrators in Nigeria. The funds had been sent over a period of three years for taxes, late fees, “release fees,” etc. After our representative finished the conversation with the older female, I called and told her that she was the victim of a fraud scam. She became intensely angry and screeched loudly that the story was true. She claimed she had an uncle who had passed away who worked the oil fields in Nigeria and she felt she knew the funds would eventually be sent to her.

Next, I called the FBI and told an agent of the scam, gave him her contact information, and described the victim’s reaction. The agent said that he has had the same experience when he would call such victims. Sometimes the victims so deeply desire the story to be true, that they build a mental moat around their false hopes and fill it with alligators of intense defensiveness so that others fear not intrude on the visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads.

Many times, the email received by the victim sternly warns the recipient not to share the information with anyone. So, not all of the clients who order our company formation and bank account opening services tell us up-front that they believe they are receiving funds in this manner.    

The technique is also referred to as a "519 Scam" because it is Section 519 of the Nigerian penal code that addresses such crimes. Nigeria is the country from which the majority of such scams originate.

So, if you receive an unexpected email informing you of a surprise windfall of great riches, quickly move the email to your "deleted" folder. If it seems too good to be true, hide your wallet.

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About Companies Incorporated: Companies Incorporated forms corporations and LLCs in all 50 US states, all Canadian Provinces and Territories, and countries around the world. Companies Incorporated is a leader in business formation, asset protection from lawsuits and corporate credit building.