Don't Get Splattered by the Pigeon Drop by BIG Mike McDaniel
Don't Get Splattered by the Pigeon Drop
By BIG Mike McDaniel
One of the con man's favorite boosts is called the "Pigeon Drop". Temp the mark with a promise of big bucks to come and he puts up a bunch to show his sincerity. When he finally figures out his money is gone so are the cons.
There's a family of related Pigeon Drops scams flooding eMail boxes. They aren't new, the same principle was boosting marks by fax long before eMail.
The most common eMail con (at least 10% of all eMail fraud) is the infamous Nigerian Letter. You may have already received one or more messages from Daniel A. Oluwa. He says he's a part of Nigeria's Federal Audit Committee. In broken English he explains how he found and needs help laundering $42.5 million. If you help, he is
willing to pay a commission of up to Two Million Dollars. Maybe you've heard from Dr. Chukwubu Eze, another Nigerian, who's looking for a partner to help him spirit away $33.62 million in illicit oil money. Alhaji Abba Gidado says he is the Deputy Director of the Gas Project and Engineering Department of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) looking for a trustworthy and
honest foreign partner willing to work for a third of 33.4 Million. All you have to do to "make your fortune" is offer your bank account number and password. But instead of the money flowing in, it goes the other way. Variations ask for a "processing fee" or want you to supply an "advance loan".
Watch out for messages from Steve Okon, the purported son of a murdered Zimbabwean diplomat. He says he's got $10 million stashed away in an Amsterdam vault. Same scam, you put up the bucks to get the process underway
The one from Mrs Mariam Sese-Seko (a.k.a. widow of a Zairian dictator) asks for help tapping into a Swiss bank account.
"Mr ABBA ABACHA" (all caps) claims to be an official with the Central Bank of South Africa desperately needs someone like you to help him launder 25 Million Dollars!
It works! More than a few gullible Internet uses have report their bank account was cleaned out within minutes of responding.
Other versions of the pigeon drop tie into current events. Beware the mercenary who smuggled a ton of war booty from the secret caves of the Taliban in Afganastan. Another variation is the locked safe (full of gold) reported lost in the World Trade Center rubble, but found and not reported.
eMail reader beware! These fleecers are pros! They are good at what they do, and fast. A recent ploy had a fake website that looked exactly like eBay (the giant auction site) asking users to re-enter credit card, pin number and bank account information.
The scammers admit they are crooked and want to steal the money or hide it from authorities. Since the admit wanting to fraud, what's to keep them from fleecing you. If it sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be ture. There ain't no free lunch. No one is going to drop 20 Million bucks in your lap just because you have an eMail
address. Keep your bank account and credit card information far, far away from them (actual scam letter below).
ACTUAL SCAM LETTER
MR ERICK LOUK.
PHONE:(874)-762864167,
FAX :(874)-762864168,
(URGENT AND CONFIDENTIAL)
RE: TRANSFER OF ($26,000.000.00 USD}
TWENTY SIX MILLION DOLLARS
Dear Sir,
We want to transfer to overseas account
($26,000.000.00 USD) six million United States
Dollars) from a Prime Bank here in South Africa, I
want to ask you, If you are not capable to quietly
look for a reliable and honest person who will be
capable and fit to provide either an existing bank
account or to set up a new Bank a/c immediately to
receive this money, even an empty a/c can serve to
receive this money, as long as you will remain
honest to me till the end for this important
business trusting in you and believing in God that
you will never let me down either now or in
future.
I am the Auditor General of one of the prime banks
here in South Africa, during the course of our
auditing,I discovered a floating fund in an
account opened in the bank in 1996 and since 1998
nobody has operated on this account again,after
going through some old files in the records I
discovered that the owner of the account died
without a [Heir/WILL] hence the money is floating
and if I do not remit this money out urgently it
will be forfeited for nothing. The owner of this
account is PEDRO F. HASLER a foreigner, a great
industrialist and he died since 1998.No other
person knows about this account or any thing
concerning it, the account has no other
beneficiary and my investigation proved to
me as well that until his death he was the
manager GOLD ARK [pty]. SA.
We will start the first transfer with six million
[$6,000.000] upon successful transaction without
any disappoint from your side, we shall re-apply
for the payment of the remaining rest amount to
your account.
The total amount involved is (USD$26 M) twenty six
million United States Dollars only. I want to
first transfer $6,000.000 [six million United
States Dollar] from this money into a safe
foreigners account abroad before the rest. But I
don't know any foreigner, I am only contacting you
as a foreigner because this money can not be
approved to a local person here, without valid
international foreign passport, but can only be
approved to any foreigner with valid international
passport or drivers license and foreign a/c
because the money is in US dollars and the former
owner of the a/c is a foreigner too, and the
money can only be approved into a foreign a/c.
However, we will sign a binding agreement, to bind
us together when we meet face to face after the
first transfer of $6 million before transferring
the second part of $20 million. I am revealing
this to you with believe in God that you will
never let me down in this business, you are the
first and the only person that I am contacting for
this business, so please reply urgently so that I
will inform you the next step to take urgently.
Send also your private telephone and fax number
including the full details of the account to be
used for the deposit.
I want us to meet face to face to build confidence
and to sign a binding agreement that will bind us
together immediately after the first transfer
before we fly to your country for withdrawal,
sharing and investments.
I need your full co-operation to make this work
fine because the management is ready to approve
this payment to any foreigner who has correct
information of this account, which I will give to
you upon your positive response and once I am
convinced that you are capable and will meet up
with instruction of a key bank official who is
deeply involved with me in this business. I need
your strong assurance that you will never, never
let me down.
With my influence and my position in the bank the
bank official can transfer this money to any
foreigner's reliable account that you can provide
with assurance that this money will be intact
pending our physical arrival in your country for
sharing. The bank official Will destroy all
documents of transaction immediately we receive
this money leaving no trace to any place and to
build confidence you can call me for heart to
heart discussion through my private satellite
phone which I secured for the security and safety
of this business as you know that this business is
confidential.I will use my position and influence
to obtain all legal approvals for onward transfer
of this money to your account with appropriate
clearance from the relevant ministries and foreign
exchange departments.
At the conclusion of this business, you will be
given 35% of the total amount, 60% will be for me,
while 5% will be for expenses both parties might
have incurred during the process of transferring.
I look forward to your earliest reply through my
email address.
Yours truly,
ERICK.
Copyright 2004 BIG Mike McDaniel
- All Rights Reserved -
BIG Mike McDaniel is a former successful
radio station owner and major market TV News
anchor and nationally recognized Speaker,
Author, and Small Business Consultant.
MailTo:McD@BIGMikeOnline.com
|
|
|
