Federal agents crack down on Internet scams

Hi

Here is another item from the news about internet scams. It appears after all that something is being done to clamp down on net scams.

please read the story and leave your comments.

alan

www.elovedeceptions.com

Federal agents crack down on Internet scams

05:35 PM Mountain Standard Time on Wednesday, October 3, 2007
By Bart Treece / 3 On Your Side Producer It’s one of the biggest scams around and federal agents are finally cracking down.

This scam has gone on for so long. The biggest problem is that the scammers live overseas and the victims live right here, many of them living in Arizona.

Because of the distance, it’s a little hard to crack down on these con artists. Until now, that is.

At a news conference today, federal agents say they have had enough.

Nigerian police, with the help of federal agents, raided Internet cafes in Africa.

As it turns out, the raid is part of a global crackdown on Internet scams.

Altogether, 16 people were arrested for allegedly taking part in fake check scams that target countless Americans.

In Amsterdam, 60 people were taken into custody for doing the exact same thing.

Federal and local authorities announced the crackdown at a news conference in downtown Phoenix.

“American consumers are being defrauded by overseas scam artists,” said Pete Zegarac, a U.S. postal inspector.

The crackdown, they say, actually started by sending American agents overseas to investigate.

“In a 21-day effort alone in Nigeria, postal inspectors oversaw the seizure of 15,000 fake checks,” Zegarac said.

U.S. postal inspector Keith Moore from the Phoenix office was in Nigeria for several weeks and says he saw firsthand how good these scammers are.

“We were able to determine their equipment is first class,” Moore said.

For example, that first-class equipment produces checks that look real.

After you cash it and send some of the proceeds back to the scammer, you later find out the check is fake.

The bait is usually set when you receive an e-mail.

“Two out of three adults receive a potential scam once a week, said Sally Wells with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office. “I have a reliable source because my mother sends them to me about once a week.”

“These scams prey on the elderly and when English is a second language,” said Ann Harwood with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Arizona.

Victims are lured into the scam because easy money is too hard to resist.

Another example, are foreign lotteries claiming you won money. To collect, you cash the fake check and return a portion to the scammer.

“It’s easy for law enforcement to stand up here and say, ‘You won the lottery without even entering. You must be the luckiest person on earth!’” Zegarac said.

Numerous times, law enforcement warn people about these scams and now they have a new tool for you, a Web site called fakechecks.org, which is part of a multi-agency effort to keep your money out of the hands of con artists.

“There’s a lot of feeling there that Americans have a lot of money and they want to target that,” Moore said.

“People fall for it,” Zegarac said. “It’s up to us to get the word out.”

That Web site is also the place to report these scams to law enforcement so they can track down these scammers.
 

Eight in EFCC net over internet crime

 Hi everyone.Been a while since I was around here.It’s been the usual
stuff here in Nigeria.Nothing much save for the political scandals flying
around.the leaders are just too greedy.Can you imagine the house
speaker renovating a house for $5million, when a new house costs
less than 20% of that sum? Pity that she’s Nigeria’s first female
speaker,but I think she’ll be the one with the shortest reign,cos
she’s been indicted by the probe panel.More on this later, cos it
raises serious moral questions related to scams.
Meantime, here’s this article for you to read. It’s from one of the
Sunday papers here in Nigeria.
hope you all find it interesting.
regards
alan
www.alanprince.wordpress.com
www.elovedeceptions.com

Eight in EFCC net over internet crime
Eric Ikhilae, Lagos – 23.09.2007

Although they vary in appearance, background, motive and age, a common trend currently binds them together as they reflect on their actions prior to their current detention at the Lagos facility of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
From the youngest, Sheriff Balogun, to the eldest, Kingsley Atere (46 years), their journey to the commission’s detention centre was informed by allegations that they were involved in cyber crime.
The suspects, eight in number, were arrested some days ago by operatives of the commission who had acted as undercover agents in a cyber cafe owned by Mr. Atere and allegedly caught the other seven in the act.
As gathered by Sunday Tribune, Mr. Atere’s undoing was that he allegedly provided a turf (the cyber cafe) for the other suspects to play their game of crime.
An EFCC source said the suspects’ arrest was made possible by information provided the commission via a petition alleging that Mr. Atere’s cybercafe located at 4, Wilmer Street, Awosika Bus-Stop, Isheri, Lagos, “is a shielding haven for notorious yahoo boys and other fraudsters.
“Our men were later sent there under cover and they were all arrested while sending scam letters on the internet,” he said. Those being held include Oyibo Ebuchulam, Sheriff Balogun, Okechukwu Obieshie, Abubakar Jubirl, Ikenna Ogbonanya, Isaac Onyekwere, Ebele Chukwu Dibor and Atere.
Sheriff, said to be an undergraduate was allegedly caught sending letters to his internet lovers, requesting for money from them while posing as Joel.
Okechuckwu, who claimed to be an electronic dealer, was discovered to have over 500 e-mail addresses in his inbox and to which he had allegedly sent scam mails.
Jubril on his part was found to operate a site with someone else’s picture and name to send mail demanding for dollars from the unsuspecting lovers. Ikenna, who deals in clothes, was said to have confessed going into the trade to raise funds for his business expansion plan.
Ebele was said to have been caught sending a mail to a Taiwanese firm to which he had earlier sent a business proposal for the manufacture of television antenna.
“The firm actually replied asking for specifications. This was why he went to the cafe to perfect the deal when the law caught up with him,” the source said.
However, the cafe owner, Mr. Atere, has denied allegations against him. He said he was not always at the cafe and that it was strange for him to have been accused of shielding criminals.
“It is my staff that monitors the activities in the cafe. I am hardly around. I hardly stay there,” he maintained. The commission has said it would soon arraign them in court.

Employment Scams from Nigeria–news item

hi.

it’s been a while since i was in touch with you. I’ve been travelling around some towns in Nigeria for some months now.
I’ll be letting you know more about my trips and what has been happening later.
Meantime, here is an article from one of the newspapers that I think you should read, as it will be of much interest to you.
It’s about a new scam that many are falling for, known as employment scams.
hope you find it interesting.
regards

alan
www.elovedeceptions.com
www.alanprince.wordpress.com

Nigeria issues warning on Internet scam

2 hours ago

LAGOS (AFP) — Nigeria’s new government Monday alerted the country’s 140 million residents against falling prey to conmen promising fake jobs and contracts at the country’s top government hospital.

The warning was the first by the government of President Umaru Yar’Adua, who took power in April and has pledged to clean up the reputation of Africa’s largest democracy which is tarnished by endemic corruption and fraud.

“The federal government wishes to alert the general public about the activities of some unscrupulous people who have been using the name of the National Hospital, Abuja, to defraud unsuspecting individuals and organisations,” a statement by the information ministry said.

It said the fraudsters were promising “huge contracts and employment” in the emails, adding: “Anyone seeking authentic information about the National Hospital can get it from its official website.”

Nigeria is notorious for Internet scams with fraudsters bombarding computer owners with emails, seeking to trick them into handing over bank details or making advance payments on non-existent money-making schemes.

Experts say that the so-called 419 fraudsters — named after the relevant section in Nigeria’s criminal code — steal hundreds of millions of dollars every year from unsuspecting victims.

The fraudsters send emails all over the world promising the recipients quick financial gains from a make-believe inheritance or fictitious lottery wins in exchange for ‘processing fees’ of several thousand dollars.