Showing posts with label 419. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 419. Show all posts

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Nigerian 419 Internet Scammers dupe Victorians



New research shows bogus promises of fabulous wealth, courtesy of unsolicited emails, continue to trick unsuspecting consumers to part with up to $120,000, despite repeated warnings by authorities.

Older Australians, in particular, are more likely to be vulnerable to the online scammers.

The Australian Institute of Criminology released the results yesterday of a survey of 202 Victorians who sent cash to Nigeria.

Some were victims of online dating scams and fraudulent job offers but most fell prey to "advance fee scams" -- promises of huge cash rewards from Nigerian princes and other fake identities if they transferred money upfront.


Click here for the complete story





Saturday, March 13, 2010

Adaobi Nwaubani Wins Coveted Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book

Adaobi Nwaubani Wins Coveted Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book

~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima


Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani


Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani's novel I Do Not Come to You by Chance has won her the 2010 Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book in the Africa Region.

The crime fiction tells the story of the notorious Nigerian 419 Internet scammers from a very sensitive narrative writer and has been described as a must read by The Washington Post.



"Nwaubani's subversive skill lies in telling us a familiar story from an unfamiliar angle. By making Robin Hood heroes of the vilified perpetrators of e-mail scams, she allows us to enjoy watching a potbellied pervert from Utah pay an African village kid's school fees," wrote Chris Cleave in The Washington Post on Saturday, May 23, 2009. I Do Not Come to You by Chance made the highly esteemed newspaper's Best Books of the Year in 2009.


Adaobi is the Editor of Elan, a small glossy fashion and style magazine published by Timbuktu Media in Nigeria.





Friday, July 24, 2009

Dear Sunny Obazu-Ojeagbase, Akin Alabi and Co. Limited



Dear Sunny Obazu-Ojeagbase and Akin Alabi and Co. Limited,

May I know how much the get-rich-quick tutorials and schemes of Sunny Obazu-Ojeagbase and Akin Alabi have contributed to the GDP and GNP of Nigeria or improved the per capita income in Nigeria?

"The challenge for Nigeria is in terms of per capita income, which is still low. Nigeria is still facing widespread poverty and infrastructure deficiency. And on the policy side, the country is in a critical juncture."
~ Mr. Konrad Reuss, Managing Director of S&P in charge of South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa.



Country GDP - per capita (US Dollar)
Afghanistan $800 (2008 est.)
Albania $6,000 (2008 est.)
Algeria $7,000 (2008 est.)
American Samoa $8,000 (2007 est.)
Andorra $42,500 (2007)
Angola $8,800 (2008 est.)
Anguilla $8,800 (2004 est.)
Antigua and Barbuda $19,000 (2008 est.)
Argentina $14,200 (2008 est.)
Armenia $6,400 (2008 est.)
Aruba $21,800 (2004 est.)
Australia $38,100 (2008 est.)
Austria $39,200 (2008 est.)
Azerbaijan $9,000 (2008 est.)
Bahamas, The $28,600 (2008 est.)
Bahrain $37,200 (2008 est.)
Bangladesh $1,500 (2008 est.)
Barbados $19,300 (2008 est.)
Belarus $11,800 (2008 est.)
Belgium $37,500 (2008 est.)
Belize $8,600 (2008 est.)
Benin $1,500 (2008 est.)
Bermuda $69,900 (2004 est.)
Bhutan $5,600 (2008 est.)
Bolivia $4,500 (2008 est.)
Bosnia and Herzegovina $6,500 (2008 est.)
Botswana $13,300 (2008 est.)
Brazil $10,100 (2008 est.)
British Virgin Islands $38,500 (2004 est.)
Brunei $53,100 (2008 est.)
Bulgaria $12,900 (2008 est.)
Burkina Faso $1,200 (2008 est.)
Burma $1,200 (2008 est.)
Burundi $400 (2008 est.)
Cambodia $2,000 (2008 est.)
Cameroon $2,300 (2008 est.)
Canada $39,300 (2008 est.)
Cape Verde $3,800 (2008 est.)
Cayman Islands $43,800 (2004 est.)
Central African Republic $700 (2008 est.)
Chad $1,600 (2008 est.)
Chile $14,900 (2008 est.)
China $6,000 (2008 est.)
Colombia $8,900 (2008 est.)
Comoros $1,000 (2008 est.)
Congo, Democratic Republic of the $300 (2008 est.)
Congo, Republic of the $4,000 (2008 est.)
Cook Islands $9,100 (2005 est.)
Costa Rica $11,600 (2008 est.)
Cote d'Ivoire $1,700 (2008 est.)
Croatia $16,100 (2008 est.)
Cuba $9,500 (2008 est.)
Cyprus $28,600 (2008 est.)
Czech Republic $26,100 (2008 est.)
Denmark $37,400 (2008 est.)
Djibouti $3,700 (2008 est.)
Dominica $9,900 (2008 est.)
Dominican Republic $8,100 (2008 est.)
Ecuador $7,500 (2008 est.)
Egypt $5,400 (2008 est.)
El Salvador $6,200 (2008 est.)
Equatorial Guinea $31,400 (2008 est.)
Eritrea $700 (2008 est.)
Estonia $21,200 (2008 est.)
Ethiopia $800 (2008 est.)
European Union $33,400 (2008 est.)
Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) $35,400 (2002 est.)
Faroe Islands $31,000 (2001 est.)
Fiji $3,900 (2008 est.)
Finland $37,200 (2008 est.)
France $32,700 (2008 est.)
French Polynesia $18,000 (2004 est.)
Gabon $14,400 (2008 est.)
Gambia, The $1,300 (2008 est.)
Gaza Strip $2,900 (includes West Bank) (2008 est.)
Georgia $4,700 (2008 est.)
Germany $34,800 (2008 est.)
Ghana $1,500 (2008 est.)
Gibraltar $38,200 (2005 est.)
Greece $32,000 (2008 est.)
Greenland $20,000 (2001 est.)
Grenada $13,400 (2008 est.)
Guam $15,000 (2005 est.)
Guatemala $5,200 (2008 est.)
Guernsey $44,600 (2005)
Guinea $1,100 (2008 est.)
Guinea-Bissau $600 (2008 est.)
Guyana $3,900 (2008 est.)
Haiti $1,300 (2008 est.)
Honduras $4,400 (2008 est.)
Hong Kong $43,800 (2008 est.)
Hungary $19,800 (2008 est.)
Iceland $39,900 (2008 est.)
India $2,800 (2008 est.)
Indonesia $3,900 (2008 est.)
Iran $12,800 (2008 est.)
Iraq $4,000 (2008 est.)
Ireland $46,200 (2008 est.)
Isle of Man $35,000 (2005 est.)
Israel $28,200 (2008 est.)
Italy $31,000 (2008 est.)
Jamaica $7,400 (2008 est.)
Japan $34,200 (2008 est.)
Jersey $57,000 (2005 est.)
Jordan $5,000 (2008 est.)
Kazakhstan $11,500 (2008 est.)
Kenya $1,600 (2008 est.)
Kiribati $3,200 (2008 est.)
Korea, North $1,700 (2008 est.)
Korea, South $26,000 (2008 est.)
Kosovo $2,300 (2007 est.)
Kuwait $57,400 (2008 est.)
Kyrgyzstan $2,100 (2008 est.)
Laos $2,100 (2008 est.)
Latvia $17,800 (2008 est.)
Lebanon $11,100 (2008 est.)
Lesotho $1,600 (2008 est.)
Liberia $500 (2008 est.)
Libya $14,400 (2008 est.)
Liechtenstein $118,000 (2007 est.)
Lithuania $17,700 (2008 est.)
Luxembourg $81,100 (2008 est.)
Macau $30,000 (2007)
Macedonia $9,000 (2008 est.)
Madagascar $1,000 (2008 est.)
Malawi $800 (2008 est.)
Malaysia $15,300 (2008 est.)
Maldives $5,000 (2008 est.)
Mali $1,200 (2008 est.)
Malta $24,200 (2008 est.)
Marshall Islands $2,500 (2008 est.)
Mauritania $2,100 (2008 est.)
Mauritius $12,100 (2008 est.)
Mayotte $4,900 (2005 est.)
Mexico $14,200 (2008 est.)
Micronesia, Federated States of $2,200 (2008 est.)
Moldova $2,500 (2008 est.)
Monaco $30,000 (2006 est.)
Mongolia $3,200 (2008 est.)
Montenegro $9,700 (2008 est.)
Montserrat $3,400 (2002 est.)
Morocco $4,000 (2008 est.)
Mozambique $900 (2008 est.)
Namibia $5,400 (2008 est.)
Nauru $5,000 (2005 est.)
Nepal $1,100 (2008 est.)
Netherlands $40,300 (2008 est.)
Netherlands Antilles $16,000 (2004 est.)
New Caledonia $15,000 (2003 est.)
New Zealand $27,900 (2008 est.)
Nicaragua $2,900 (2008 est.)
Niger $700 (2008 est.)
Nigeria $2,300 (2008 est.)
Niue $5,800 (2003 est.)
Northern Mariana Islands $12,500 (2000 est.)
Norway $55,200 (2008 est.)
Oman $20,200 (2008 est.)
Pakistan $2,600 (2008 est.)
Palau $8,100 (2008 est.)
Panama $11,600 (2008 est.)
Papua New Guinea $2,200 (2008 est.)
Paraguay $4,200 (2008 est.)
Peru $8,400 (2008 est.)
Philippines $3,300 (2008 est.)
Poland $17,300 (2008 est.)
Portugal $22,000 (2008 est.)
Puerto Rico $17,800 (2008 est.)
Qatar $103,500 (2008 est.)
Romania $12,200 (2008 est.)
Russia $15,800 (2008 est.)
Rwanda $900 (2008 est.)
Saint Helena $2,500 (1998 est.)
Saint Kitts and Nevis $19,700 (2008 est.)
Saint Lucia $11,300 (2008 est.)
Saint Pierre and Miquelon $7,000 (2001 est.)
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines $10,500 (2008 est.)
Samoa $4,900 (2008 est.)
San Marino $41,900 (2007)
Sao Tome and Principe $1,300 (2008 est.)
Saudi Arabia $20,700 (2008 est.)
Senegal $1,600 (2008 est.)
Serbia $10,900 (2008 est.)
Seychelles $17,000 (2008 est.)
Sierra Leone $700 (2008 est.)
Singapore $52,000 (2008 est.)
Slovakia $21,900 (2008 est.)
Slovenia $29,500 (2008 est.)
Solomon Islands $1,900 (2008 est.)
Somalia $600 (2008 est.)
South Africa $10,000 (2008 est.)
Spain $34,600 (2008 est.)
Sri Lanka $4,300 (2008 est.)
Sudan $2,200 (2008 est.)
Suriname $8,900 (2008 est.)
Swaziland $5,100 (2008 est.)
Sweden $38,500 (2008 est.)
Switzerland $40,900 (2008 est.)
Syria $4,800 (2008 est.)
Taiwan $31,900 (2008 est.)
Tajikistan $2,100 (2008 est.)
Tanzania $1,300 (2008 est.)
Thailand $8,500 (2008 est.)
Timor-Leste $2,400 (2008 est.)
Togo $900 (2008 est.)
Tokelau $1,000 (1993 est.)
Tonga $4,600 (2008 est.)
Trinidad and Tobago $18,600 (2008 est.)
Tunisia $7,900 (2008 est.)
Turkey $12,000 (2008 est.)
Turkmenistan $6,100 (2008 est.)
Turks and Caicos Islands $11,500 (2002 est.)
Tuvalu $1,600 (2002 est.)
Uganda $1,100 (2008 est.)
Ukraine $6,900 (2008 est.)
United Arab Emirates $40,000 (2008 est.)
United Kingdom $36,600 (2008 est.)
United States $47,000 (2008 est.)
Uruguay $12,200 (2008 est.)
Uzbekistan $2,600 (2008 est.)
Vanuatu $4,600 (2008 est.)
Venezuela $13,500 (2008 est.)
Vietnam $2,800 (2008 est.)
Virgin Islands $14,500 (2004 est.)
Wallis and Futuna $3,800 (2004 est.)
West Bank $2,900 (includes Gaza Strip) (2008 est.)
Western Sahara $2,500 (2007 est.)
World $10,500 (2008 est.)
Yemen $2,400 (2008 est.)
Zambia $1,500 (2008 est.)
Zimbabwe $200 (2008 est.)

Copyright © 2000 Tong Siak Henn. Last modified on Friday, July 24, 2009




Pastor(Dr.) Sunny Obazu-Ojeagbase has been successful as the leading Publisher of Complete Sports and Success Digest and the founder of the Success Attitude Development Centre(SADC), but he has said that the majority of his students have not succeeded after graduation and he blames them for failing to practice what he taught them. But what does he expect from them when most of them have not been taught the difference between get-rich-quick schemes and human capital development.
The key to real success is not get-rich-quick schemes, but creating jobs and creating wealth. Looking for short-cuts to financial success by sharp practices online is a negative way to making it in life.

A student of SADC who has made about $40, 000 at 24 is claiming to be the youngest millionaire in Nigeria! Such erroneous and ambiguous notions have only exposed the narrow-mindedness their get-rich-quick mentors and the shallow promises of their formulae.

The only way to fast track the Vision 2020 is to develop enterprises that will create jobs for the millions of the unemployed in Nigeria and only by job creation can we create real wealth and not endorsing and promoting get-rich-quick schemes online under various labels and tags.

There is no difference between the so called smart Alec who manipulates the Google AdSense program to rip-off the advertisers and earn regular pay-offs from the sharp practices and the notorious 419 Yahoo-Yahoo Internet scammers.
So who is fooling whom?

We should encourage Nigerians to study and work hard in developing businesses that would be beneficial to the majority of Nigerians in the fulfillment of the Millennium Development Goals(MDGs) and the realization of the Vision 2020 of Nigeria.

There are no short-cuts to success, even if you win the million dollar lottery or Baba Ijebu lotto.
Having only N10 million in your bank account does not mean you are successful until you have used that money to make positive impact in your family, community and country and not engaged in the selfish acquisition of the status symbols of the rat race to catch up with the Joneses.


Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Re-Branding Nigeria: Beauty and the Beast


Prof. Dora Nkem Akunyili

Re-Branding Nigeria: Beauty and the Beast

The beauty of Prof. Dora Nkem Akunyili is epitomized by her incorruptible personality. She is patriotic and pragmatic in her commitment to the nation building of a New Nigeria.

She became a national icon of patriotism and pragmatism and a popular role model for Nigerians when she was a successful Director General of National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and used her position for the control and prevention of fake pharmaceutical products, foodstuffs and beverages in Nigeria. Her daring campaign against the importation, production and distribution of counterfeit drugs and unsafe food and subsequent destruction of fake drugs made her the heroine of the Nigerian government. Then surprisingly she was appointed as the new Minister of Information and Communication when most Nigerians thought she would have been more suitable as the Minister of Health. Dora Akunyili the Amazon accepted the challenge of her new office and soon came up with the banner of Re-branding Nigeria.

I see re-branding of Nigeria as the conscientization of Nigerians to develop a national consciousness for the reformation and redemption of Nigeria after decades of socio-political decadence and the institutionalization of corruption in public office.

Nigerians have been maligned and stigmatized all over the world as the infamous perpetrators of the 419 Yahoo-Yahoo Internet scams and shameless corrupt public officials. Nigeria has the worst reputation among African countries in the global village. Dora Akunyili believes we can redeem the battered image of Nigeria and came up with the new slogan of great nation, good people, but she has been confronting dissenting voices of opposition from several local and international quarters of cynical Nigerian skeptics and pessimists who have given up hope on the redemption of Nigeria. They do not doubt her capability, but they are afraid that she would not be able to reform Nigerians who are incorrigible criminals and who do not have scruples.

Behaviour change is tough, but no matter how disappointed most Nigerian are, Dora Akunyili believes that Nigerians are really redeemable. She reminds me of the fable of Beauty and the Beast.
But can the beauty of the incorruptible heroine tame the beast of corruption on rampage in Nigeria? My answer is yes, Dora Akunyili can do it and we should give her all the cooperation and support she needs for the redemption and transformation of corrupt Nigerians for the nation building of a New Nigeria that we can be proud of as a great nation of good people.


Friday, April 3, 2009

Three Defendants Sentenced in 'Advance-Fee' Fraud Scheme That Cost Victims More Than $1.2 Million

2 Apr 2009 23:55 Africa/Lagos

Three Defendants Sentenced in 'Advance-Fee' Fraud Scheme That Cost Victims More Than $1.2 Million

WASHINGTON, April 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Three defendants were sentenced to prison today after pleading guilty in January 2008 to federal charges of running an "advance-fee" scheme that targeted U.S. victims with promises of millions of dollars, Acting Assistant Attorney General Rita M. Glavin of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Benton J. Campbell of the Eastern District of New York announced. The defendants were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dora L. Irizarry at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, N.Y.


Nnamdi Chizuba Anisiobi (a/k/a Yellowman, Abdul Rahman, Michael Anderson, Edmund Walter, Nancy White, Jiggaman and Namo), 31, citizen of Nigeria, was sentenced to 87 months in prison.


Anthony Friday Ehis (a/k/a John J. Smith, Toni N. Amokwu and Mr. T), 34, citizen of France, was sentenced to 57 months in prison.


Kesandu Egwuonwu (a/k/a KeKe, Joey Martin Maxwell, David Mark and Helmut Schkinger), 35, citizen of Nigeria, was sentenced to 57 months in prison.


All three defendants each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, eight counts of wire fraud and one count of mail fraud.


The investigation was initiated by Dutch law enforcement authorities. After identifying victims in the United States, Dutch authorities notified the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which opened its own investigation, resulting in the charges against the defendants. Three of the defendants were arrested in Amsterdam on Feb. 21, 2006, and were subsequently extradited to the United States.


According to the indictment and an earlier filed complaint, the defendants sent "spam" e-mails to thousands of potential victims, in which they falsely claimed to control millions of dollars located abroad. Attempting to conceal their identities, the defendants admitted they used a variety of aliases, phone numbers and e-mail addresses. In one scenario, the defendants sent e-mails purporting to be from an individual suffering from terminal throat cancer who needed assistance distributing approximately $55 million to charity. In exchange for a victim's help, the defendants offered to give a 20 percent commission to the victim or a charity of his or her choice. Subsequently, as part of the ruse, the defendants sent a variety of fraudulent documents, including a "Letter of Authority" or a "Certificate of Deposit," making it appear that the promised funds were available, and pictures of an individual claiming to suffer from throat cancer. The evidence to the court established that Anisiobi telephoned victims, disguising his voice to give the impression that he was suffering from throat cancer.


After obtaining their victims' trust, the defendants asked them to wire-transfer payment for a variety of advance fees, ostensibly for legal representation, taxes and additional documentation. In return, the victims received nothing. In a variation of the scheme, if the victims said they could not afford to pay the advance fees, the defendants admitted they would send them counterfeit checks, supposedly from a cancer patient, to cover those fees. Many victims deposited the checks and then drew on them to wire-transfer the advance fees. Subsequently, when the checks did not clear their accounts, the victims suffered substantial losses.


The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorneys Mary (Kit) Dimke, Amanda Riedel, and Nicola Mrazek, Paralegal Pamela Johnson, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanya Y. Hill.


Source: U.S. Department of Justice

CONTACT: U.S. Department of Justice, +1-202-514-2007, TDD
+1-202-514-1888


Web Site: http://www.usdoj.gov/


Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Good News From Nigeria!



I am 100% determined to spread the good news of this book Scientists Discover Hell: As Astronauts Find Heaven from my country Nigeria, because I am happy that such a great revelation is coming out where the rest of the world only expects 419 Yahoo-Yahoo Internet Scammers and shamelessly corrupt politicians,

I bought four copies of this book at $25 each and sent the four copies to the following people.

1. Oprah Winfrey
2. Prof. Francis Collins
3. Ariana Huffington and
4. Pastor Sunday Adelaja.

I have also succeeded in getting the publisher/distributor to reduce the price of the paperback from $25 to $16 only. But the new price is only available on their own website until next week when it will be effective on Amazon.com.
I am going to buy and send 20 more copies to other people.

The book chronicles the true life testimonies of people who were brought back to life by Jesus Christ in present Day Nigeria, a Russian woman who actually saw hell, an American pastor's experience of heaven and the scientific reports of scientists and astronauts who discovered the existence of hell, heaven and angels.

About the author:
The Guild Of Researchers International is an intelligentsia of scholars committed to theology and public enlightenment through both spiritual and scientific research.

Scientists Discover Hell: As Astronauts Find Heaven
Edited By Olisaemeka A.G.

About the Book:

This and other publications are in fulfillment of a mandate and in satisfaction of the curiosity to conduct, as much as possible, comprehensive and incisive research works on various topical issues that are of global consequences to the entire human race. The facts are presented the way they are and the researchers have no bias or religious inclination in their presentation as the researchers have different background and the facts adduced hereto are as verifiable as they are purely scientific, historical, contemporary and testimonial in their extent, intent content and impact. Proper citations and sufficient acknowledgments are made of the various sources of facts referred to in this work as required in any academic research.

Publication Date: Sep 27 2008
ISBN/EAN13: 1440429995 / 9781440429996
Page Count: 400
Binding Type: US Trade Paper
Trim Size: 8" x 10"
Language: English
Color: Black and White
Related Categories: Religion / Religion & Science

List Price: $16.00
CLICK HERE TO ORDER THIS GREAT BOOK NOW!