"I was so saddened by the news of your mother’s illness. I do hope she will get better. Of course I want to help. I gathered up what money I could find and found $800. I was afraid I wouldn’t have enough, but by the grace of God, I had just enough.
"So I took the money to MoneyGram and they told me they would send it to you. But after I got home, I got a call from MoneyGram. They said they had frozen my transfer and it cannot be released until after I pay a fee of CAN$52.83. Of course I was angered and demanded an explanation. They said that MoneyGram is a United States company and because of the trade dispute with the United States, the Ministry of Finance has imposed a special export tariff on money transfers.
"I am just a simple person and do not understand these international matters and tariffs. But I was told that if I don’t pay by Friday, the money I was trying to send for the benefit of your poor mother will be seized by the Ministry of Finance.
“I am despondent. I gave my last dollar hoping I could help save your mother. Perhaps you can help me? If you would wire CAN$53.28 to me, I could pay the tariff and the $800 would be on its way to your mother immediately.”
When they write back saying they can’t do this, respond with:
"As I said, I am a simple person just trying to help your poor mother. I do not understand all these tariffs and regulations and international matters. I am so scared and confused.
"Fortunately, my brother is coming back from a business trip on Thursday. He is a registered lawyer and a smart man. I will talk to him as soon as he gets back. I am certain he will know what to do.
“Please send my deepest condolences to your mother and wish her well for me.”
This last part is to induce panic that “your brother” will tell you that you are being scammed and that the scammer needs to act before Wednesday.
Tell her you don’t have any cash but you have your Grandma’s engagement ring. Ask if she knows anyone who could give her a good price for it.
Then send her a piece of crap glass stone and alert the sheriff/police local to the address “she” gives you. If she gives you a USPS box you are golden, the postmasters LOVE nailing these folks. They have their own police force with a Federal mandate.
I actually responded to one once. The return address was purportedly someone I knew and he claimed to be desperate for money for his sick sister. He is a sufficient flake that, for all I knew, it could even have been true. I replied and said that if he could describe our last meeting, I would do it. I got no answer. Just for the record, our last meeting had been an absolutely improbable coincidence, but I will not describe it here. It was sufficiently memorable that he could not possibly have forgotten it.
I told her that I found a Western Union station at a Walmart near me (true actually) and she sent me her contact information for Williston, North Dakota. But she lives in California, apparently.
