Wacky Email from PRINCE JUDE O. NNAJI (kinda long)

[davesink]

I just got this email and as scams go, it’s certainly not lacking in creativity. I did a search and couldn’t find a thing on this guy or the email. Has anyone else received it? Or could I really be the lucky chosen one to do the bidding of Prince JUDE O. NNAJI?:

ACCORD SUCCOR (huh?)

FROM: PRINCE JUDE O. NNAJI
SIR,

I AM PRINCE JUDE O. NNAJI, THE FIRST SON OF CHIEF DR
JOHNSON EMEKA NNAJI, WHO WAS UNTIL HIS DEATH THE MAYOR
OF ENUGU STATE AND THE TRADITIONAL RULER OF MY HOME
TOWN NKANU IN ENUGU STATE OF NIGERIA. I GOT YOUR
CONTACT THROUGH YOUR COUNTRYÆS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND
INDUSTRY, WHERE WE READ A BRIEF NOTE WRITTEN ABOUT
YOU, AS A VERY RELIABLE AND TRUSTWORTHY PERSON, SO
AFTER SEEING YOUR PROFILE IN YOUR COUNTRYÆS CHAMBER OF
COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, WE HAVE DECIDED TO CONTACT YOU
FOR THIS IMPORTANT TRANSACTION WHICH IS VERY
CONFIDENTIAL AND REQUIRES YOUR ASSISTANCE.

AFTER MY FATHERÆS DEATH AND BURIAL, MY SELF AND MOTHER
WERE GOING THROUGH MY FATHERÆS PERSONAL BELONGINGS IN
HIS PRIVATE ROOM, AND THERE WE SAW A FILE WHICH
CONTAINS DETAILS OF SOME AMOUNT OF MONEY WHICH HE HAS
HIDDEN IN A BOX IN A SECURITY HOUSE HERE IN NIGERIA.
THE MONEY IS TOTALLED US$42MILLION AND ACCORDING TO
THE FILE THAT WE SAW IN HIS ROOM, THE SECURITY HOUSE
DOES NOT KNOW THE ACTUAL CONTENT OF BOX BECAUSE HE
DEPOSITED IT AS CONTAINING GOLD, WATCHES AND
JEWELLERIES. ALSO STATED IN THE FILE IS AN INSTRUCTION
FROM MY LATE FATHER, WHICH STATES THAT IN CASE OF ANY
UNFORSEEN CIRCUMSTANCE, THAT THIS MONEY MUST NOT BE
INVESTED OR SPENT HERE IN THE COUNTRY, THAT WE SHOULD
SEEK FOR A WELLTRUSTED FOREIGNER WHO CAN HELP US
TRANSFER THE MONEY TO HIS COUNTRY.

SO AFTER READING ABOUT THE MONEY FROM THE FILE, WE
WENT TO THE SECURITY HOUSE TO CONFIRM THE STORY AND
ALL WAS TRUE, SO WE ARE NOW CONTACTING YOU TO KNOW IF
YOU CAN HELP US TO TRANSFER THE MONEY TO YOUR COUNTRY
AND INVEST THEM FOR OUR FAMILY. WE HAVE AGREED TO GIVE
YOU 15% OF THE TOTAL SUM IF YOU HELP US TO TRANSFER
AND INVEST THIS MONEY IN YOUR COUNTRY. YOU WILL ALSO
RECEIVE 10% OF THE AFTER TAX INCOME GENERATED BY THE
BUSINESS INVESTMENT THE MONEY WOULD GENERATE. WE HAVE
ALSO MAPPED OUT 5% OF THE TOTAL MONEY FOR SETTLEMENT
OF EXPENSES THAT MIGHT BE INCURRED BY BOTH PARTIES
AFTER WE MUST HAVE SUCCESSFULLY TRANSFERRED THE MONEY
TO YOUR COUNTRY.

WE ARE NOW INVITING YOU A CONVENIENT COUNTRY FOR US TO
MEET IN PERSON, BUILD TRUST, SHARE MUTUAL
UNDERSTANDING AND DISCUSS THE BEST WAYS TO CONCLUDE
THIS TRANSACTION. WE HAVE CONCLUDED SPECIAL DIPLOMATIC
ARRANGEMENTS WITH SOME DIPLOMATS WHO WILL HELP US TO
MOVE THE MONEY TO THE VENUE OF OUR MEETING.

PLEASE REPLY US IMMEDIATELY THROUGH OUR EMAIL TO LET
US KNOW YOUR WILLINGNESS TO ASSIST US IN THIS
TRANSACTION AND TO LET US KNOW YOUR MOST CONVENIENT
DATE TO MEET US IN A COUNTRY WHERE WE WILL MEET FOR
THE SUCCESSFUL CONCLUSION OF THIS TRANSACTION. PLEASE
LET US HAVE YOUR PRIVATE PHONE AND FAX NUMBERS FOR
EASIER AND FASTER COMMUNICATION AND ALSO FOR
CONFIDENTIALITY.

THANKS AS WE AWAIT YOUR URGENT RESPONSE.
BEST REGARDS,
PRINCE JUDE O. NNAJI.

[breaknrun]

Scam. Search Google for “nigeria email scam” or this MB. There’ve been threads on this before.

[hibernicus]

I and several people I know have received letters (not e-mail) of this type. They invite you to allow them to lodge some 10s of millions of dollars in your bank account and in return for this service they will give you some millions for yourself.

If you contact them you will find that in order to take advantage of this offer you will need to give them amounts of money in the order of $100,000 in cash, but hey, what’s a hundred thou when you will be picking up millions in a short few weeks?

Then, if you are sufficiently gullible, you will be asked for another similar amount, to cover some unforeseen administrative costs.

And the great thing is, when you’ve lost all your money, you don’t even go to the cops because you would have to reveal to the world how stupid you’ve been.

Many of these scams operate out of Ireland, and we have had businessmen(!) arriving in Dublin airport with suitcases/briefcases full of dollars having arranged to hand it over in a Dublin hotel.

If you do follow this up, let us know how you get on, won’t you?

[Schnitte]

Allegedly, this scam is a whole branch of industry in Nigeria “employing” quite a lot of people.

Snopes had a good story on this: http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/scams/nigeria.htm

[Fillet]

From the FBI web page on fraud:

What is a Nigerian Letter or “419” Fraud?

Nigerian letter frauds combine the threat of impersonation fraud with a variation of an advance fee scheme in which a letter, mailed from Nigeria, offers the recipient the “opportunity” to share in a percentage of millions of dollars that the author, a self-proclaimed government official, is trying to transfer illegally out of Nigeria. The recipient is encouraged to send information to the author, such as blank letterhead stationary, bank name and account numbers and other identifying information using a facsimile number provided in the letter. Some of these letters have also been received via E-mail through the Internet. The scheme relies on convincing a willing victim, who has demonstrated a “propensity for larceny” by responding to the invitation, to send money to the author of the letter in Nigeria in several installments of increasing amounts for a variety of reasons. Payment of taxes, bribes to government officials, and legal fees are often described in great detail with the promise that all expenses will be reimbursed as soon as the funds are spirited out of Nigeria. In actuality, the millions of dollars do not exist and the victim eventually ends up with nothing but loss. Once the victim stops sending money, the perpetrators have been known to use the personal information and checks that they received to impersonate the victim, draining bank accounts and credit card balances until the victim’s assets are taken in their entirety.

While such an invitation impresses most law-abiding citizens as a laughable hoax, millions of dollars in losses are caused by these schemes annually. Some victims have been lured to Nigeria, where they have been imprisoned against their will in addition to losing large sums of money. The Nigerian government is not sympathetic to victims of these schemes, since the victim actually conspires to remove funds from Nigeria in a manner that is contrary to Nigerian law. The schemes themselves violate section 419 of the Nigerian criminal code, hence the label “419 fraud.”

Some Tips To Help You Avoid These Frauds:

1. If you receive a letter from Nigeria asking you to send personal or banking information, do not reply in any manner. Send the letter to the U.S. Secret Service or the FBI.

2. If you know someone who is corresponding in one of these schemes, encourage that person to contact the FBI or the U.S. Secret Service as soon as possible.

I got an email myself, once, although not from Prince Jude. If you want to do a little something to make yourself feel good, forward the email with all the header info to the FBI.

[Zappo]

I’ve gotten a couple of emails in a similar vein. Mine are usually from “scientists” and “capteins [sic] of industry”, though.

The tribal chieftain thing is a nice touch.

Zap!

[bibliophage]

A similar scam was discussed here about a week ago: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=94765