'I Will Eat Your Dollars'

latimes.com ^ | October 20, 2005 | Robyn Dixon

[reelfoot]

FESTAC, Nigeria — As patient as fishermen, the young men toil day and night, trawling for replies to the e-mails they shoot to strangers half a world away.

Most recipients hit delete, delete, delete, delete without ever opening the messages that urge them to claim the untold riches of a long-lost deceased second cousin, and the messages that offer millions of dollars to help smuggle loot stolen by a corrupt Nigerian official into a U.S. account.

But the few who actually reply make this a tempting and lucrative business for the boys of Festac, a neighborhood of Lagos at the center of the cyber-scam universe. The targets are called maghas — scammer slang from a Yoruba word meaning fool, and refers to gullible white people.

. . .

In this sanctum, Samuel says, he extracted thousands of American e-mail addresses, sent off thousands of fraudulent letters, and waited for replies. He thinks disclosure of his surname could endanger his safety.

The e-mail scammers here prefer hitting Americans, whom they see as rich and easy to fool. They rationalize the crime by telling themselves there are no real victims: Maghas are avaricious and complicit.

. . .

"419 is just a game, you are the losers, we are the winners.

White people are greedy, I can say they are greedy

White men, I will eat your dollars, will take your money and disappear.

419 is just a game, we are the masters, you are the losers."

"Nobody feels sorry for the victims," Samuel said.

Scammers, he said, "have the belief that white men are stupid and greedy. They say the American guy has a good life. There's this belief that for every dollar they lose, the American government will pay them back in some way."

. . .

[reelfoot]

"I have money I need to move from the Bank of Lagos to America to help a sick relative there. I am willing to pay you 10% of the American $373,000 for your assistance . . . ."

[KC_Conspirator]

The targets are called maghas — scammer slang from a Yoruba word meaning fool, and refers to gullible white people.

Not just criminal, but rascist too. Such wonderful people.

[Oztrich Boy]

Ha! I'm getting 25% of $29.5 million!

From: Mrs Fatima

Date:Tuesday, 18 October 2005 1:24

To: undisclosed-recipients:;

Subject; ATTENTION PLEASE

Dear Friend,
I crave your indulgence at this mail coming from somebody
you have not know before. I decided to do this after
praying over the situation. You should please consider the
transaction on its content and not the fact that you have
not known me before. I need not dwell on how I came by
your contact information because there are many such
possibilities these days.

I would like to introduce myself as Mrs. Fatima Ali, of
Repulic of Benin, widow to Late Mr. Usman Ali (for
Consular of the benin embassy in Madrid,Spain.I have been
recently been daigonosed of Cancer of the Pelvics. I am
writing from my sick bed.

There is this consignment (containg US$29.5Million cash,
in US$100 bills) my husband deposited with a security
company, here in Cotonou, Republic of Benin of which I am
the next of kin. With my health condition and because my
husband and I have no children, I am looking for a
credible person to whom I will pass the right of next of
kin. This person will apply to the company and request,
from them, the procedure towards retrieving the
consignment from them.

This is on the condition that you will take 25% of the
fund for yourself, 5% used for expenses, while you will
use the remaining 70% for the less previlege people in the
society. This is in fulfilment of the last request of my
husband: that a substantial part of the fund be used to
carter for the less previleged.

If this condition is acceptable to you, you should contact
me immediately with your full names and contact
information so that I will send you all the documents that
the company gave to my husband when the consignment was
deposited. So that you will contact the company directly,
and demand from them the procedure towards retrieving the
consignment from their company.

I cannot predict what will be my fate by the time you wll
recieve the fund, but you should please ensure that the
fund is used as i have described above. I look forward to your response.

Yours,
Mrs. Fatima Ali

[FunkyChicken]

Would YOU like to do battle with these 419 scam artists?

If so, go to:

http://www.419eater.com/

FC

[dynachrome]

Also: "www.scamorama.com" and "www.ebolamonkeyman.com"

[layman]

Oil-rich Nigeria, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management

This from the World Factbook on Nigeria. Also, life expectancy of 47 years and average annual income of $1,000. It looks like Nigeria is populated by 'maghas' of the black variety.

[Right Wing Assault]

Talk about greedy. That's why this guy entered the game.

Talk about stupid. He was supposed to get 20%. Sucker!

There was a great website where an American guy actually played games on these guys. He contacted them and pretended he was a mark but he just messed with them. It was pretty funny. Anyone have a link to that?

[Lazamataz]

It appears that you still have work.

I suggest you get a photo of them actually eating a dollar bill. :o)

[lowbridge]

There was a great website where an American guy actually played games on these guys. He contacted them and pretended he was a mark but he just messed with them. It was pretty funny. Anyone have a link to that?

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1197128/posts

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1197128/posts?page=1#1

[Right Wing Assault]

Yes! These are beautiful. Thanks! I about busted a gut laughing.

[Theo]

<> Scammers, he said, "have the belief that white men are stupid and greedy"

Who is greedy?

[evolved_rage]

White men, I will eat your dollars, will take your money and disappear.

Hey Kofi Anan, there are a group of racist thieves in Nigeria. What, Africans can't be racist?...