Scammers! They do books too! – The Lycan Times 狼人時報

A friend who runs an online store told me on WLM (Windows Live Messenger) recently that some scammers were trying to pull a fast one on her. Here’s the chronology of events:

June 1, 2008 (Sunday) 2318hrs
Friend received an email from an Andrew Goodluck (they can’t even be bothered to be more creative than that!) from the Benin Republic using the email account and_goodluck@yahoo.com requesting the price for 50 copies of the Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers, Fourteenth Edition (ISBN 0071441468 / 9780071441468)

June 1, 2008 (Sunday) 2331hrs
Already suspicious of the origins of the email, friend replied with a request for the shipment address before she would provide the cost information. It is reasonable since you might want to include shipping charges in the official quote as the buyer may still be genuine.

June 2, 2008 (Monday) 2039hrs
The scammers replied, informing my

friend that they wanted the Fifteenth Edition instead, with the following address information:

ABLS Limited
Attn Kenneth Ejike
Siege Cimetiere Habitat
Face Station Akpakpa
Route De Porteo-Novo.
Cotonue,
Benin Republic.
Western Africa

Is it not already obvious by now this might be just some kind of the Nigerian Scam?

June 3, 2008 (Tuesday) 1243hrs
Either my friend is bored and she is looking for some comedy, or she is still hoping that this is a genuine customer. She gave him a proper quotation, roughly about $8000 in total, and asks for ‘Andrew’ to TT (telegraphic transfer) the amount to her before she delivers them.

June 4, ~~1989~~ 2008 (Wednesday) 2011hrs
The scammers replied (I quote, without correcting the grammar and spelling mistakes!):

Thanks for your load down information. But I want to let you know that we have lost so much to online sellers, who request for payment upfrontly just like you did and when payment is received they withhold the goods and money. For this reason, we have resolve to always bring in our bank while trying to purchase on the internet. I will advice you contact my bank through email address: barcleys_wire.trans@account.com we bank with barclays bank.London. I have also forward this transaction to them, hopefully they will contact you before tommorrow runs out.
muc regard
Andrew Goodluck

Damn. Do they think we are really stupid? And why would Barclays not use an email from their own domain name? Not to mention the obvious mistake of spelling their own company name wrong? For goodness sake, my friend who works in OCBC Security gets an ocbcsec.com email address, and Barclays Premier League is not some obscure thing from the planet Sirius Secundus!

June 4, 2008 (Wednesday) 2052hrs
Now my friend is really amused, and so she decided to disturb them by replying them with a fake address she created on her own on the .biz domain. And we thought the story will end here! Just how wrong we are!!

It was to her immense amusement when she received this email (see below)!

For a clearer copy: download PDF copy here

Man, they really try so hard to make it look authentic. So hard that unless you aren’t net savvy (or you are exceptionally stupid or desperate for business), you will have figured out that it’s a fake right away.

To think of it, from Andrew Goodluck, to barcleys, and finally barclary, it would seem to me that they were all along leaving hints to you: We are scammers, Don’t fall for it!

Thieves honor? I really do not know. And I wonder just how much effort they need to go through before they even get one fellow stupid enough to fall for it, and I wonder just how they are going to get some money out of my friend from this, since it’s her asking for the money now.

Either way, no one wanted to risk it by providing account information. For all we know the account might just end up plundered. We both just had a freaking good laugh looking at it and agreed to share this with everybody so they can have a good laugh too.

Enjoy the below words I have had with the amazing Mr. Goodluck of Benin W/Africa

This is what I said! (I will send our list of products that are available, shortly.) This is not a promises it means when I get to it, please do not get confused.

I will need some referrals, outside Benin, from your past business successes in the mean time please see http://www.kodiakimports.com for our product line up.

(All product is .750ml) Firestarter Vodka $12.00 per bottle Tequila La Cava Del Mayoral Blanco $11.00 Reposado $14.00 Anejo $18.00 per bottle, Rum Don Perfil Batacha $9.50 Anejo$14.00 per bottle.
Prices are FOB San Diego CA 92154 Tax Free

Best,
D Wright
—– Original Message —–
From: Smart Okomba
To: Kodiak Imports
Sent: Thursday, September 16, 2010 7:34 AM
Subject: I need to speak with you.

Dear Sir,

Do you really want us to do this business or not? You promised to send your quotations to me since yesterday and up till today I have not received such message from you.

Please you I need your telephone to call you.

Thanks,
Andrew Goodluck.

— On Wed, 9/15/10, Kodiak Imports wrote:

From: Kodiak Imports
Subject: Re: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.
To: Smart Okomba
Date: Wednesday, September 15, 2010, 1:10 PM

Andrew,

I will send our list of products that are available, shortly.

I want it understood that Kodiak Imports does not pay your company fees/commission that is between your contact and you, as well as any State/Country or Government fees for the approval of any products we will not pay for the transfer of funds either.

Please do not ask us to pay for anything, this has occurred in the past with Benin and has left a somewhat sour taste; a few bad apples have left me with these feelings.

Sincerely,

D Wright
President,
Kodiak Imports, LLC.

—– Original Message —–
From: Smart Okomba
To: Kodiak Imports
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 12:39 AM
Subject: Re: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.

Dear Sir,

We are located in Cotonou Benin Republic in West Africa and we are acting as an Agent between the Buyer and you as the supplying company. So we are entitle to 2% commission once the business goes through between your company and the buyer.

Kindly send us your quotations to submit to the buyer.

Thanks,
Andrew Goodluck.

— On Tue, 9/14/10, Kodiak Imports wrote:

From: Kodiak Imports
Subject: Re: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.
To: Smart Okomba
Date: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, 12:51 PM

Hello Andrew,

Are you in the US territory or outside the US?

Best,
Kodiak Imports
—– Original Message —–
From: Smart Okomba
To: info@kodiakimports.com
Sent: Tuesday, September 14, 2010 5:44 AM
Subject: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.

Dear Sir,

We are contacting you for the supply of whisky and brandy, we got your contact address from the internet as the exporter of whisky and brandy.
We will be grateful if you can send us your price quotations and list of product you can supply to us.

Thanks,
Andrew Goodluck.

One comment

D Wright says:

2010-09-17 at 1:26

Enjoy the below words I have had with the amazing Mr. Goodluck of Benin W/Africa

This is what I said! (I will send our list of products that are available, shortly.) This is not a promises it means when I get to it, please do not get confused.

I will need some referrals, outside Benin, from your past business successes in the mean time please see http://www.kodiakimports.com for our product line up.

(All product is .750ml) Firestarter Vodka $12.00 per bottle Tequila La Cava Del Mayoral Blanco $11.00 Reposado $14.00 Anejo $18.00 per bottle, Rum Don Perfil Batacha $9.50 Anejo$14.00 per bottle.
Prices are FOB San Diego CA 92154 Tax Free

Best,
D Wright
—– Original Message —–
From: Smart Okomba
To: Kodiak Imports
Sent: Thursday, September 16, 2010 7:34 AM
Subject: I need to speak with you.

Dear Sir,

Do you really want us to do this business or not? You promised to send your quotations to me since yesterday and up till today I have not received such message from you.

Please you I need your telephone to call you.

Thanks,
Andrew Goodluck.

— On Wed, 9/15/10, Kodiak Imports wrote:

From: Kodiak Imports
Subject: Re: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.
To: Smart Okomba
Date: Wednesday, September 15, 2010, 1:10 PM

Andrew,

I will send our list of products that are available, shortly.

I want it understood that Kodiak Imports does not pay your company fees/commission that is between your contact and you, as well as any State/Country or Government fees for the approval of any products we will not pay for the transfer of funds either.

Please do not ask us to pay for anything, this has occurred in the past with Benin and has left a somewhat sour taste; a few bad apples have left me with these feelings.

Sincerely,

D Wright
President,
Kodiak Imports, LLC.

—– Original Message —–
From: Smart Okomba
To: Kodiak Imports
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 12:39 AM
Subject: Re: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.

Dear Sir,

We are located in Cotonou Benin Republic in West Africa and we are acting as an Agent between the Buyer and you as the supplying company. So we are entitle to 2% commission once the business goes through between your company and the buyer.

Kindly send us your quotations to submit to the buyer.

Thanks,
Andrew Goodluck.

— On Tue, 9/14/10, Kodiak Imports wrote:

From: Kodiak Imports
Subject: Re: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.
To: Smart Okomba
Date: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, 12:51 PM

Hello Andrew,

Are you in the US territory or outside the US?

Best,
Kodiak Imports
—– Original Message —–
From: Smart Okomba
To: info@kodiakimports.com
Sent: Tuesday, September 14, 2010 5:44 AM
Subject: We are interested to buy your whisky and brandy.

Dear Sir,

We are contacting you for the supply of whisky and brandy, we got your contact address from the internet as the exporter of whisky and brandy.
We will be grateful if you can send us your price quotations and list of product you can supply to us.

Thanks,
Andrew Goodluck.

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