Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
MEDIA STATEMENT ON THE ADVANCE FEE FRAUDS (419 SCAMS) BEING PERPETRATED FROM SOUTH AFRICA
The Department of Foreign Affairs would again like to draw the attention of the public to the dangers of becoming involved in Advance Fee frauds, known internationally as the 419 scam.
The Central Bank of Nigeria recently published a half page warning advertisement in the Sunday Times highlighting the dangers of the Advance Fee fraud. While many of the letters of solicitation, under the guise of an "urgent business proposal", are from Nigeria a recent trend indicates that increasingly this type of fraud is now being perpetrated from South African soil. A number of South African diplomatic Missions abroad have already reported incidences of these letters having surfaced in their areas of jurisdiction. This trend, unfortunaely, may hurt the image of South Africa in the international community. The Department wishes again to urge all of those who receive such letters of solicitation to treat these with the utmost circumspection, and to pass the matter on to the South African authorities or to their nearest Interpol contact point.
ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS PRETORIA 30 SEPTEMBER 1997