My mom received the following email from a Cpt. Brian Morgan claiming to be a U.S. Marine in Iraq:
Dear Friend,
Good day and compliments, i know this letter will definitely
come to you as a huge surprise,I am Capt. Brian Morgan, a US
Marine, serving in the 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment
which Patrols the Anbar province, Iraq.
I am desperately in need of assistance and I have summoned up
courage to contact you. I am presently in Iraq and I found your
contact particulars in an address journal. I am seeking your
assistance to evacuate the sum of $10,570,000 (Ten million
Five Hundred and Seventy Thousand USD) to the States or any safe
country, as far as I can be assured that it will be safe in your
care until I complete my service here.This is no stolen money and
there are no dangers involved.
Contact me via my private box:
usmc.cpt.brian.morgan@hotmail.com so
that I can
furnish you with more details.
Respectfully,
Capt. Brian Morgan
United States Marine Corps. IRAQ
(Alternate versions of the email claim to have 2.5 milllion USD and 12.57 million USD and different email adresses with the name "brian morgan" in it.)
Because he even emphasizes that it is not a fraud, my mom fell for it, thinking that she was helping him transfer the money out in order to get 30% of the money. He claimed that the money was in a lawyer "David Rosenblatt"''s hands and we had to pay him to get the money. Email below:
Rosenblatt Associates Chambers
Rosenblatt Associates
24 Lincoln 's Inn Fields,
LONDON WC2A 3EG,
ENGLAND.
Tel: +44 704 578 0706
Fax: +44 871 264 2487
PRIVATE & CONFIDENTIAL
July 24th, 2008
ATTN:**** *******
I am barrister David Leonard Rosenblatt (Esq.) a practicing officer of the law, now serving under the imperial British high court, I was born in Britain, and having attained my degrees and practiced law for a number of years abroad , I was inclined to relocate my chambers back to the United Kingdom to practice and uphold the law. On behalf of my associates I wish to welcome you to 'Rosenblatt Associates' we are a most efficient law firms and are committed to providing the most comprehensive, effective and efficient services to our clients. We offer our help at every step, providing innovative solutions to help you through the ever-changing constitutional rules, regulations and procedures. We look after your interests and provide the best advice and representation. Count on our effective counsel and reliable services. We are dedicated to our clients and provide the highest quality legal representation. Our greatest concern is for your satisfaction and success. This is our commitment to you, you are not just a client to us but also our friend we take great pride and pleasure in helping them secure whatever type of help that they require.
We want to let you know that we received a package from a German Diplomat from the UN who told us that the package was sent from Capt. Brian Morgan in Iraq and that the package belongs to ( name here)in the United States Of America, please be informed that you will have to claim the package without any delay because the diplomat made us to understand that the package Contains classified valuables.
The package will be insured and delivered to your door step with adequate security and that will cost you $1,975.15 only. We were informed that the package demands adequate security too, hence some legal documents must be obtained to giude it through. You are required to send the charges immediately via western union money transfer,once you have done that,please email us with the slip of payment attached for file record so that we can commence with the delivery of the package to your designated address.
You are advised to go to the nearest western union office in your locality and send the sum of $1,975.15 to the name and address of our secretary found below:
Name: Amanda Smith
Address: 24 Lincoln 's Inn Fields, LONDON WC2A 3EG, ENGLAND.
Amount: $1,975.15
Note that you will be required to send all payment information to us as soon as payment is made so that we can commence the delivery of the package with immediately effect.Please Kindly indicate where you want the package delivered.
Thank you for your anticipated co-operation.
Sincerely yours,
David Leonard Rosenblatt Esq.
(Principal Attorney QC)
Later we were told that the money had been intercepted by the FSA customs and they showed us a large suitcase of money. We had to pay additional anti-Terrorist and anti-Money Laundering fees to get the money (a total of $17, 820.07 British pounds). We were told to pay the money 2 seperate times. My mom went to the Western Union to first pay $600 USD to say that the money belonged to us otherwise the FSA would arrest us and we had to pay and additional $2,820.07 to his (the fake lawyer Rosenblatt) bank account (because he was working for us to release the funds). Afterwards, my mom became suspicious because she kept borrowing money from her friends, who told her to see if it was real or not.
All in all, we lost a total of $11,000 USD (there were addtional surcharges added when we wired the money). Although the original Brian Morgan letter had already been determined to be a scan online, we were originally not aware that it was a fraud and there have yet been no victims' stories to this fraud.