Just posting this in case anyone else does a Google search for text in this advance-fee fraud message.
In case anyone was wondering, this is a scam. If you want to see how these play out, click through for another example.
Dear Intending Partner
Thank you very much for your mail. I am Mrs. Gogna Mridula a nationality of Indian and bank officer with the International bank of Taipei ( Bank SinoPac) Taiwan. Let me give you a detailed description of what is in this transaction for us. In June 2003, My late client Osman Peltek, Turkish Businessman, who is a nationality of Iraq, made a numbered fixed deposit of One Billion Five hundred Million Taiwanese New Dollars ($1,500,000,000.00 TWD) for 18 calendar months, this is valued to Forty Four million Five Hundred Thousand United State Dollars($44.5 Million USD) only in my branch. Upon maturity several notices were sent to him, even during the war (U.S and Iraqi war) Nine years ago (2004). Again after the war another notification was sent and still no response came from him. We later found out that Osman Peltek is dead, sources confirmed that he was strangled in Bagdat (Baghdad). According to the Turkish Embassy in Baghdad, Peltek’s body was found in a deserted area in the neighborhood of Zafiraniye. No one has heard from Osman Peltek since 4th November 2003 when he had been vanished.
http://www.iraqbodycount.net/names.htm
Against this backdrop, we still have about Eight (8) more months left for someone to come up and claim the funds as next of kin to this fund. My suggestion to you is that I will like you as a foreigner to stand as the next of kin to Osman Peltek so that you will be able to receive his funds and for the money to be pulled out from my bank and out from Taiwan.
WHAT IS TO BE DONE?
I want you to know that I have had everything planned out so that we shall come out successful. I have contacted an attorney that will prepare the necessary documents that will back you up as the next of kin to Osman Peltek, all that is required from you at this stage is for you to provide me with your details as below:
Full Name:
Contact Address:
Occupation:
After you have been made the next of kin, the attorney will also file in for claims on your behalf and secure the necessary approval and letter of probate in your favour for the transfer of the funds to an account that will be provided by you.
There is no risk involved at all in this matter as we are going to adopt a legalized method and the attorney will prepare all the necessary documents. Please endeavour to observe utmost discretion in all matters concerning this issue. Once the funds have been transferred to your nominated bank account we shall share in the ratio of 70% for me and 30% for you. Should you be interested please send me your full names and current residential address.
Finally after that I shall provide you with more details of this operation. Your earliest response to this letter will be appreciated.
Kind Regards,
Mrs. Gogna Mridula
As usual, the take-away here is NEVER send money via Western Union or Money Card to someone you do not know. NEVER pay money to collect a “prize”. What follows below is an account from the Windsor Star in 2009, about a victim of this kind of scam:
A Leamington man has fallen prey to international scam artists who strung him along for more than a year with the promise of millions in cash, but ultimately bilked him and his family of $150,000.
John Rempel said he quit his truck driving job, lost friends, borrowed money and crossed the globe in pursuit of a non-existent inheritance, after he was contacted by e-mail in what is known as a Nigerian 419 scam.
Rempel said he borrowed $55,000 from an uncle in Mexico and his parents gave him $60,000 on credit to cover fees for transferring $12.8 million into his name.
“They’re in it now because of me,” said Rempel, 22, breaking into sobs. “If it wasn’t for me, nobody would be in this mess. You think things will work out, but it doesn’t. It’s a very bad feeling. I had lots of friends.
“I never get calls anymore from my friends. You know, a bad reputation.”
His troubles began in July 2007. He said he got an e-mail from someone claiming to be a lawyer with a client named David Rempel who died in a 2005 bomb attack in London, England, and left behind $12.8 million.
“They used to come in the mail,” said Leamington police Const. Kevin O’Neil. “Now the majority of these are sent through e-mail. Keeping up with the times, using all the wonderful technology that’s available to them.”
“I was told once that they send out 30,000 e-mails a day, around the world, and they hope for just one or two responses. Once you return a phone call or return an e-mail, these people now have their hooks into you.”
The lawyer said his client had no family but wanted to leave the money to a Rempel. It was his lucky day.
“It sounded all good so I called him,” said Rempel. “He sounded very happy and said God bless you.”
The man then told him he had to pay $2,500 to transfer the money into his name. Then there were several more documents. Some cost $5,000.
He was told to open an account at a bank in London. That required a $5,000 minimum deposit. The crooks later sent him an e-mail with a link to what he was told were details of his new account. Some money had been transferred there for “safe keeping.”
“Everything was good,” said Rempel.
Then he got an e-mail from a government department — he’s not sure which country — saying he owed $250,000 on tax on his inheritance. Rempel spoke to his contact, who told him they negotiated the fee down to $25,000.
Rempel went to Mexico where his uncle owns a farm. His uncle gave him $10,000 cash and money for a plane ticket. He was going to London to make sure it was legitimate.
“I had $10,000 in cash in my pocket and my uncle sent another $25,000 when I was over there.”
In London, Rempel met some people and handed over the $10,000.
They met Rempel the next day with a suitcase. They said it had $10.6 million in shrink-wrapped U.S. bills. Rempel wanted more proof. His new friends pulled out one bill and “cleansed” it with a liquid “formula,” which washed off some kind of stamp. Rempel was told that process made the money “legal tender.”
“I was like holy crap, is that mine?” he said. “They said ‘yes sir, it’s yours.’ It all sounded legit.”
Rempel returned to his hotel room clutching the formula and waited for the others so they could cleanse all his money. They never showed, and later told him they got held up. In the meantime, Rempel dropped the formula. The bottle broke. He called his contact who said he’d get more. Rempel returned to Leamington and waited.
A few weeks later Rempel got a call. They found more formula. It would cost $120,000.
“I thought, ‘let’s work on it, nothing is impossible,’” said Rempel.
His contacts were willing to meet associates in different countries to get cash for the formula. It would require several plane tickets, worth $6,000 each.
Rempel was told they collected $100,000, but still needed $20,000. There was a guy in Nigeria who had it, but another plane ticket was required. The contact later told him he could only get $15,000 and “begged” Rempel for the last $5,000.
Rempel borrowed money. He stopped making Visa and car payments.
They called a week later and said the money was ready to go. They just needed $6,900 for travel costs and to rent trunks to ship the money.
Later, the men called to say they were at the airport in New York. Security stopped them and they needed $12,500 for a bribe. Finally, Rempel had enough.
“I said, ‘no way I’m cleaned out.’”
Rempel, his parents and 10-year-old brother Ike drove to New York. They spent a day searching the airport for the men, with no luck. They returned home and called police.
“I really thought in my heart this was true,” said Rempel.
Be careful out there.
The Old Wolf has spoken.
Playing in the World Game 
This happen to me just now!!! I typed the Osman Peltek name in google and luckly this popped up! Because this sounded so legit! But luckly i didnt go fourth with it!
I received the exact mail three days ago. Usually i play along and act all concerned and sympathetic until the point when they begin asking for money that’s when i assure them that i am very aware its a scum and can’t fall for it. Those guys should look for clean jobs and stop filling people’s inbox with nonsense.
Dear Friend,
First of all I want to thank you for considering my proposal. One aspect I will like to talk about is PARTNERSHIP. I strongly believe in the power and spirit of Partnership in business. Partnership, it is all about mutual understanding, mutual efforts /contribution and mutual benefits for all parties involved in the partnership. On this note, I would want us to work as a team in pursuit of this interest with utmost professionalism, transparency, commitment and confidentiality. The first thing I will do is to get you acquainted with the complete details (a general overview) of this transaction so as to give you a foundation on which to make a concrete decision. I actually got your email contact in Searching for a good partner abroad.
I am Mrs. Horniakova Bozena a nationality of slovakia and bank officer with the International bank of Taipei ( Bank SinoPac) Taiwan. Let me give you a detailed description of what is in this transaction for us. In June 2003, My late client Osman Peltek (A Turkish Crude oil merchant), who is a nationality of Iraq, made a numbered fixed deposit of One Billion Five hundred Million Taiwanese New Dollars ($1,500,000,000.00 TWD) for 18 calendar months, this is valued to Forty Four million Five Hundred Thousand United State Dollars($44.5 Million USD) only in my branch. Upon maturity several notice was sent to him, even during the war (U.S and Iraqi war), Ten years ago (2004). Again after the war another notification was sent and still no response came from him. I immediately passed the task of locating him to the internal investigations department of International bank of Taipei (Bank Sinopac). Information started to trickle in that Osman Peltek and his family had been killed during the war in a bomb blast that hit his home at Mukaradeeb where his personal oil well was. The bank immediately launched an investigation into possible surviving next of kin to alert about the situation and also to come forward to claim his estate. If you are familiar with private banking affairs, those who patronize our services usually prefer anonymity, but also some levels of detachment from conventional processes.
After further investigation it was also discovered that Osman Peltek did not declare any next of kin in his official papers including the paperwork of his bank deposit. And he also confided in me the last time he was at my office that no one except me knew of his deposit in my bank. So the Forty Four million Five Hundred Thousand United State Dollars is still lying in my bank and no one will ever come forward to claim it. What bothers me most is that according to the laws of Taiwan, at the expiration of Ten years nine months the funds will revert to the ownership of the Taiwan Government if nobody applies to claim the funds. This will not happen if I have my way.
What I wish to relate to you will smack off unethical practice but I want you to understand something. It is only an outsider to the banking world who finds the internal politics of the banking world aberrational. The world of private banking especially is fraught with huge rewards for those who sit upon certain chairs and oversee certain portfolios. You should have begun by now to put together the general direction of what I propose. There is $44.5 Million USD deposit just lying unclaimed. This bank has spent great amounts of money trying to track the deceased’s family; they have investigated for several months and have found no identifiable family member. The investigation has come to an end.
My Proposal; I am prepared to furnish the necessary details to you as the closest surviving relation. I am also proposing that after successful execution of the business deal and the money in your account, the funds be disbursed in the ratio 40/60; 40% of the funds will go to you for offering yourself as the next of kin and providing a foreign account especially an offshore account for safe transfer of the funds and 60% will be for me. Please let me know in your next correspondence if the above sharing ratio is okay by you because we can fine-tune this based on our interactions incase you have any problem with it. Following the master plan for this deal I am looking at a bank that have transaction understanding with my bank as first point of transfer to put off eyebrows that may be raised or to avoid unnecessary questioning.
I want you to know that I have had everything planned out so that we shall come out successful. I have contacted an attorney that will prepare the necessary documents that will back you up as the next of kin to Osman Peltek, all that is required from you at this stage is for you to provide me with your details as below which is very necessary:
Full Name:
Contact Address:
Occupation:
Age:
After you have been made the next of kin, the attorney will also file in for claims on your behalf and secure the necessary approval and letter of probate in your favour for the transfer of the funds to an account that will be provided by you.
I am aware of the consequences of this proposal. Once more, I ask that if you find no interest in this project that you should discard this mail and forget I ever contacted you, I ask that you do not be vindictive and destructive. Do not destroy my career because you do not approve of my proposal. I am not a criminal and what I do, I do not find against good conscience, this may be hard for you to understand, but the dynamics of my industry dictates that I make this move. Such opportunities only come one’s way once in a lifetime. I cannot let this chance pass me by. For once I find myself in total control of my destiny. This chance won’t pass me by and please do not let me miss my chance, if you will not work with me let me know and let me move on with my life. I am a woman and this is an opportunity to provide them with new opportunities. I have evaluated the risks and the only risk I have here is from you refusing to work with me and alerting my bank. If you give me positive signals, I will give you the relevant modus operandi to initiate this process towards a conclusion.
I send you this mail not without a measure of fear as to what the consequences, but I know within me that nothing ventured is nothing gained and that success and riches never come easy or on a platter of gold. This is the one truth I have learned from my private banking clients. Do not betray my confidence. Finally after that I shall provide you with more details of this operation. Your earliest response to this letter will be appreciated.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Horniakova Bozena
Thank you for forwarding this additional scam letter. If just one person sees it and saves their money, it will have been time well-spent.
I got exactly the same letter, except the name was Mrs. Horniakova Bozena. Sounds like a Bond girl name Lol…
These scammers are such turds.
Such hideous people. This was a family man who was murdered while on business in Iraq. Contrary to what is said in the email, he had a wife and two beautiful children. It’s sickening that people use real people like this for their own greed.
Agreed. All I can do from my end is try to warn people about their scam, so that they can avoid becoming victims.