Scam Warning-Important According to www.fraud.org this is one
of the top worst scams on the Net.
Admittedly this column is
not about disabilities. However I think it is important and relevant since
it is about a problem that seems to prey on people with disABILITIES
Yours truly doesn't mean to imply that disabled people are the only
victims of scam artists. The truth is that this population is especially
targeted. The reasons I believe are several. First many disabled
people are on fixed incomes so the appeal of getting rich quick may have
some appeal. Second scammers assume that just because someone has a
disability that they are an easy touch for them. Not assuming anything about
gullibility. Please take this as a warning only. If you are skeptical
already, great. More power to you
There are many scams on
the net. In essence, if it sound too good to be true, it almost always
is One warning sign is if you have to pay money to get in, its a ripoff.
Also if there's a time pressure or any other type of pressure that
should be a sign to warn you too.
There is one particular scam
that claims if you are willing to fly to Uganda and meet the wife of the
former leader of Togo, you will get millions of dollars. This is an
actual scam. For more information please go to home.rica.net/alphae/419.coal
Many people have lost their live savings with this scam and even gotten
in trouble with the law. They are stranded in Togo with no help from the
Togolese govt. or their native country
Believe it or not, to coin a
phrase, many people, too numerous to count have actually fallen for this
foolish scheme. The illicit plan has been around for close to twenty years
!!!
I know about this one because I received several of their
emails. I can honestly say I did not fly to Togo and I was not a victim.
I don't want you to be one either.
Note: I am not condemning the
Togolese people, Nigerians and all other African People, African Americans
or People of Color anywhere in the world.
Here is an actual email
that I believe is part of this terrible scam. I must assure you I did not
answer this email. Telephone: 228084460
Dear Sir,
I am
Akunor Rawlings, a cousin of the former president of the Federal
Republic of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings, and I also held an appointment during his
10yrs in office as the General Manager in charge of Ministry of Solid
Mineral such as Gold, Diamond, Bauxites etc.
During this 10yrs
tenure, I managed to secure a large quantity of Gold and Diamond
secretly before he handed over power to his successor Mr. John Kuffour.
When he took over power, information got to me that the new president is
aware of this large deposit of Gold and Diamond that is in my
possession, and because of this, I have to look for a way to dispose it.
To this end, I contacted a friend of mine in a neighboring Country Federal
Republic of Togo, who helped me to sell the Gold and Diamond for a total of
$18.5Million (Eighteen Million, Five Hundred United States Dollars), which
is now deposited in a security company in Lome, Togo.
Because of my
relationship as the cousin of the former president of the Federal
Republic of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings, my Togolese friend suggested that we
should move this entire fund Overseas to avoid being traced by the
present Ghanaian president.
However, I am now asking you to be my
partner in this transaction. Therefore, if you are interested, kindly
contact me through my e-mail address or call me on my telephone number
in Togo: 228084460 so that we can discuss on the modalities for a smooth
transfer of the entire fund into your nominated bank account Overseas.
For your participation, I will offer you 15% of the entire fund but which is
subject to negotiation.
Meanwhile, I am looking forward to hearing
from you so as to plan on the next line of action to execute this mutual
beneficial transaction.
Yours sincerely,
Akunor Rawlings.
About the Author
Disabled disability activist for over twelve years for local greater
Philadelphia, disability groups.
