New e-mail scam uses Maltese names to woo 'investors'

The notorious e-mail scams, which promise recipients a marvellous fortune in return for their cooperation, have been taken to a new level, with the latest message using Maltese names to con gullible people into giving away their money - for good.

The e-mail is one of a number of recent messages capitalising on the situation in Iraq to tempt people to part with their money.

But the latest bait being used is a Maltese name, aimed at duping people into believing they are on to a good thing.

The e-mail is purportedly sent by a certain Dr Claire Cassar from Claire & Partners Associates. The sender claims to be the lawyer and investment consultant to General Ibrahim Moussa of the Iraq Armed Forces, before the US invasion.

The e-mail makes up a story that $20.5 million are lying idle in a bank and an invitation is made to the recipient of the e-mail to stand as the next of kin to General Moussa so that he will be able to receive his funds either in cash or transferred into his bank account.

"I will now travel to Malta, where we will share the fund according to our agreed sharing ratio and also invest my share in profitable business ventures in your country," the e-mail reads.

The e-mail asks the recipient for the full name and address, telephone and fax numbers.

Scams such as this go on to use various means to lure unwary investors into letting go of their cash, such as eliciting a "commission" or the payment of "transfer charges".

When contacted, Geoffrey Bezzina, consumer complaints manager at the Malta Financial Services Authority, said the spelling mistakes in the address provided ample proof that the e-mail was a scam - Brittania House is written as Brilitanna House and Valletta spelt Vallatta.

There are several ways and means of verifying whether the email is genuine or not, though in the vast majority of cases such e-mails promising heaven on earth are fake, Mr Bezzina warned.

One common element in such messages is that requests for any transfer of funds are not made via banks but through so-called moneygrams, which enable money to be transferred from person to person.

"Whoever falls for these kinds of scams is either greedy or extremely naïve. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is," he said.

Mr Bezzina said he had been informed that a young Maltese couple were recently fooled into giving away €16,000 after being wooed into believing they had won a lottery and that they would need to pay transfer charges.