"Dear friend" opens the letter from someone I don't know, never met, nor will I ever meet.

You know they are looking for money! There is either a lot of unclaimed money abroad that "bank officials" are just dying to get rid of, or the fraud scheme listed below has been extremely successful. Whatever the case may be, I am now on the receiving end of one of these desperation letters almost every week.

Desperate to move money out of the country and desperate for those of us dumb enough to fall for these instantly rich schemes. After all, who among us - be truthful now - wouldn't entertain the notion of getting $6 million US dollars just for allowing someone to use our bank account?

Here is the letter in its entirety, complete with misspellings. One can forgive those errors; it is obvious that this person is educated because he/she is able to write rather coherently in a totally foreign language.

The Letter to the Gullible

Dear Friend,

I am the director of credit and foreign payment of the National Bank of Nigeria Plc. I am writing in respect of a foreign customer of my bank with account number 14-255-2004/NB/T who perished in the Kenyan air crash with the whole passenger aboard.

Since the demise of this our customer, I personally have watched with keen interest to see the next-of-kin who will come to claim his funds of $20.5 million US which has been in my bank for a very long time; however nobody has shown up, hence this letter to you.

On this note, I approach you to submit your particulars through me as the next-of-kin so that with my contact in the bank I can process it and the money will leave to any account you will provide. The banking regulations here do not allow such money to stay more than four years after this period of time, the bank would usually recall the money to the tresurery.

In view of this, I will give you 30 percent of the total sum after a successful conclusion of the transaction. Any expenses incurred by both parties in course of this transaction shall be refunded from five percent set aside for this purpose. I shall need the following from you: 1. An account where the fund will be transfered. 2. Your private telephone and fax numbers. 3. A copy of your international passport for the applications in the bank.

Finally, be informed that the entire transaction is risk free. Upon the receipt of the above requirements, we hope to be through with the transaction in five working days. Please reply me via this e-mail address.

Yours faithfully,

Reverend Dr. Musa Bello

Well, here is my first question to put to Dr. Musa Bello. If this fellow is really a reverend, how honest do you think he is? Your average, hardworking and honest reverend is deeply concerned with the care of his parishioners who cope on a day-to-day basis with abject poverty, would have been soliciting every dime of this 'unclaimed inheritance' for his flock, the better to honour the Lord while saving lives from starvation in the process. So, why isn't he? Maybe, he is not a real reverend.

Risk free? Almost nothing is risk free. Even thinking bad thoughts can have consequences, and he wants you to pretend you are the long-lost relative. Second question - there are an awful lot of personal questions and information requested. Who in their right mind would give anyone their bank account number, while obliging providing a copy of their passport? There are so many clever people today who can penetrate the privacy wall at any bank with just those two pieces of information.

Readers, this is absolute unmitigated fraud. It is considered so dangerous that the United States Secret Service steps into the act by posting warnings on their website.

The Nigerian Fraud Schemes are also known as Advanced Fee Fraud (AFF) or "4-1-9" after the Nigerian Penal Code Section 419, which identifies fraud schemes. On a global basis, these types of scams for years have involved tens of thousands of people. The criminals obtain names of potential victims from a variety of sources including trade journals, professional directories, newspapers and commercial libraries. Other ways to solicit include:

An offer is made to transfer millions of dollars in "over invoiced contract" funds into your personal bank account/

You are encouraged to travel overseas to complete the transaction.

The confidential nature of the transaction is emphasised.

There are usually claims of strong ties to Nigerian officials.

A Nigerian residing in the US, London or other foreign venue may claim to be a clearing house bank for the Central Bank of Nigeria. These con men are incredibly convincing using forged or false documents bearing apparently official Nigerian government letterhead, seals, as well as false letters of credit, payment schedules and bank drafts.

The fraudster may establish the credibility of his contacts, and thereby his influence, by arranging a meeting between the victim and "government officials" in real or fake government offices.

Then comes the hard ball play. In order to get your $6 million, they need money from you to make the whole thing happen. An official will demand an up-front bribe or an unforeseen tax or fee to the Nigerian government will have to be paid before the money can be transferred.

This is a deadly trap. Victims are almost always requested to travel to Nigeria or a border country to complete a transaction. Violence and threats of physical harm may be employed to further pressure victims. In June, 1995 an American was murdered in Lagos, Nigeria, while pursuing a 4-1-9 scam, and numerous other foreign nationals have been reported as missing.

Conclusion: The more money you are dealing with the greater the risk. Allowing thoughts of great fortunes to cloud your rational judgment and override risk may mean losing your life! If you are the recipient of one of these messages, I urge to immediately delete the message - and every subsequent plea that hits your mailbox.

Con artists have everything to gain and nothing to lose! And they know, there is a sucker born every minute. Don't let it be you!

Martha Harris Myron CPA CFP is a Bermudian, a Certified Financial Planner (US licence) practitioner and VP, Personal Financial Services at Bank of Bermuda. She holds a NASD Series 7 licence, and formerly owned a US financial services practice meeting the needs of 400 individual and corporate clients.

Confidential e-mail can be directed to marthamyron@northrock.bm

The article expresses the opinion of the author alone, and not necessarily that of Bank of Bermuda. Under no circumstances is this advice to be taken as a recommendation to buy or sell investment products or as a promotion for financial plans. The Editor of The Royal Gazette has final right of approval over headlines, content, and length/brevity of article.