Getting too Close to Home?

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Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 2:12 am

I've progressed to a point in my bait where the lad has referred me to a contact purportedly in Spain. However, when I search the email address ([email protected]) it comes back located in a city not very far from me. Probably a coincidence but it is still reason for concern. Should I proceed or dump this lad?

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 3:57 am

Wow, that is scary!

Yes, you can still bait him but be safe about it. Probably take more precautions than you normally would.

Scammers are pretty much everywhere so it's not all surprising that he could be near you. Just don't get tempted to meet him. Double check the Ip address just to be sure.

Master of Master Baiters Joined: 10 Jan 2010 Posts: 503

I've had two cases like that. I always drop them. I was dealing with a Nigerian lad who was running a loan business. I said I was In London from Canada and asked If I could complete the forms for the loan in person. He gave me an address that was an apartment block about 1 mile from where I lived, it was so close I knew exactly where it was.

It is not worth risking anything that is too close to home. You could always find some excuse not to meet him though.

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 6:13 am

wtriker,

If you feel it's too close to home. Some people here at the site are getting 40 and 50 scam mails a day. Not to mention what's in surplus and a site called dodgit.com has fresh Lads DAILY.

So if you're looking to "hook-up"
with that special someone, long-distance business relationships are best.

my 2 cents

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 6:42 am

wtriker wrote:

...it comes back located in a city not very far from me.

I'm not really sure why this is a problem. I regularly give lads the city where I live. I see little harm in it. And just to further the point, in the past, I've also given the lads my name and photograph.

There's absolutely nothing they can do even with all of that information.

In your case, though, they don't even have one of those pieces. The fact that it was a city near to you is nothing more than a coincidence. Think about it. If the lad knew exactly where you lived and wanted to spook you, he would have given you the city where you lived instead of a nearby one.

If I were you, I would contact this person and check the IP address to confirm that they really are close to you. And if they are, that just makes your bait all that much more fun. Very Happy

Oh, what I would give to be in contact with a lad operating out of Sacramento. Lad meet in Rancho Cordova. Twisted Evil

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 6:48 am

I have pulled the reverse. On a stranded traveler scam (the one in the gmail warning) I decided it would be fun to be too close to the scammer in London (IP address in Nigeria so not really there) and offered to buy dinner, make airline reservations, buy the ticket and provide a ride to the airport.

The lads get spooked just like you did..

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 8:50 am

The answer is quite simple:

If you have any concerns for your safety (and you obviously do or you wouldn't be asking) you should drop the bait.

Nickthecop wrote:

I'm not really sure why this is a problem. I regularly give lads the city where I live. I see little harm in it. And just to further the point, in the past, I've also given the lads my name and photograph.

That is certainly not something that we condone.
Give a lad your name and city and it may not be difficult to track you down to your home address. It doesn't even matter if your lad is in Africa - there are plenty who operate in international gangs and for every lad in Nigeria we bait, it's likely that he has a connection within a few hours' driving distance from you at the very least.
Although it's highly unlikely that you may receive a visit, it is still a possibility and therefore we do not give the lads any of our personal details. Remember also that it doesn't even take a visit to start screwing with you - personal details can be used in all sorts of ways.
Believe me, I've dealt with lads who would send someone round to my house or try to get revenge like a shot if they knew who and where I am.

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 10:45 am

If the scammer really does have some associate close to you in the same country - (And assuming it's actually someone who's helping commit fraud of his own free will, not some innocent person that's been duped into acting as a mule or something) - what are the chances of getting him arrested, using the correspondence with the scammer as evidence?

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 12:25 pm

^^ Very, very slim. Using the correspondence alone? About zero.
To get a conviction, even slimmer.

Unfortunately, our LE in the West could be said to be even worse than their African counterparts when it comes to dealing with 419. Not their fault though - their hands are tied by our politicians and by the scammer's using holes in the law to their advantage.

There is some evidence that their attitudes and methods are slowly changing regarding the big lads but for your regular lad or mule scamming out of a Western address, I wouldn't hold my breath on them taking action.

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 12:37 pm

Thanks all. Since my goal is to meet in Spain, I guess I'll play along at least for a while using extra care. At this point I'm sure the lad cannot connect me to my character. I was hoping for a safari but I doubt someone from here will go all the way to Spain to meet me. Although they may have another agent there. BTW, how does one know that a safari really occurred rather than it be a local member of the organization?

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 1:22 pm

I like my baits to be so close, I even make up the spare room just in case Wink

I dream of walking up behind one and slapping a "419 scammer" sticker on his back and taking a photo of it.

Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 6:08 pm

Well, I managed to get one lad to travel from Mali to France and I didn't even ask him to travel or go to France for any reason. He went on his own. Shocked

But then again I got him to T.W.A.T. Laughing

EDIT: 789.

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