Martial Arts Scam from Nigeria??

[Bobster]

Okay, I open up my email client from my website this morning & I find this little jewel:

Hello Master,

I am Mr Christopher Williams. I have a kid of 14 years that is coming over to USA shortly and I want him to use that oppotunity to learn Martial Art in your Dojang. I discovered you from a very reliable martial Art Directory. He will be in the state for 4 months and I want him to learn for the whole 4 months. There is arrangement already for his accommodation. the boy is a beginner and his name is Kelvin. The payment will be made to you by my business associate in USA and It will be inform of money order or a cashier check.

Now, kindly get back to me with the cost for the 4 months lesson and the cost for the baUniform (Dubok) and the other needed equipments. I will also like to have the complete contact details for the sake of the payment.

….Who the hell, reading my website, would think that I do this kind of thing?? The words "Dubok" and "Dojang" are Korean, primarily used in Tae Kwon Do schools, I am clearly a Pencak Silat - Filipino Martial Arts school. Although the "Hello Master" was weird, it's not unusual, I've had people make that mistake with me plenty of times before.

And before you ask, NO, I am not accepting some 14 year old kid, I don't even have a children's curriculum. You must be at least 21 years old to train with me, and even that would be an exception. And what in THE hell is a "baUniform"??? Is that like, a school dress code with a degree in astrophysics?!?!?

The format and wording of this smacks of the Nigerian scams currently flooding the web. Has anybody else here experienced this sort of thing?

[tellner]

Not that one in particular, but I'm willing to bet it will go one of two ways:

1) There will be fees that need to be paid. Of course, once the kid gets here you'll be reimbursed. Honest.

2) They'll send you a cashier's check or money order. Then one of two things will happen. It will be for more than the agreed-on amount and they'll ask you to send them back the excess. Or the deal will fall through once the instrument has been deposited. They'll ask you to send back the money. Either way the money order or cahsier's check will turn out to have been a fake. You will be out whatever you sent them plus the fees your bank charges you for the bad deposit.

[bcullen]

If you agree he asks you to cash the check/MO and give it to his "son", who then disappears and when your bank goes to cash this "money order" or whatever they find it to be a fake, leaving you stuck holding the bag.

I've seen this one going around with rent for a college student.

[KenpoDavid]

Maybe the author does not have English as his first language and maybe he is only familiar with korean arts in his home country? Why do you think this is a scam?

[Bobster]

Well KenpoDavid, there is no one discerning thing. However, there are several smaller elements that POINT to it being a scam...I never said it was, although after investigating it all morning I am now convinced that it is.

First, I am addressed as "Master"...Not "Bobbe" "Master Bobbe" "Master Edmonds" "Guru" or even "Mr." Most people who get my email from my site at least use my NAME somewhere in the text.

The second sign is "I have a kid of 14 years that is coming over to USA shortly "

1: He "has a kid" not "My son", "My child" or "My boy"
2: He is only 14. My website (for those who care to read it) clearly states that I DO NOT TEACH ANYBODY UNDER 21. That alone should have given him pause before contacting me.

The third sign was that I was discovered "From a very reliable Martial Art Directory". Now, I have often been found through third party sources, but they normally name the source, i.e. "I found you on Martial Arts Planet" or "I found you on the Silat Resource site". Wording it as "I discovered you from a very reliable martial Art Directory" is almost VERBATIM how the Nigerian scams are worded, except "Source" is substituted for "Directory".

The fourth sign is the most damning:
"The payment will be made to you by my business associate in USA and It will be inform of money order or a cashier check"

When have you ever had to discuss HOW the payment would be made? Either he has the cash or he doesn't. And although I would accept a cashier's check, I've never even SEEN one, let alone been paid with one. That of itself is a little unusual. I've never had someone check out my class, sign up for lessons & tell me; "The payment will be made in American currency, in the form of $20 & $50 dollar bills, slightly worn", I would suspect anyone that did. This is the biggest sign that something is rotten in the state of Denmark.

Lastly, we have him asking "the cost for the 4 months lesson and the cost for the baUniform (Dubok)"

It's not that he mispronnounced the uniform (I don't even have/require one), it's that where on my site does it say I both require & sell "baUniform"(s)?? And lastly, my website clearly states that THE FIRST MONTH IS FREE. Why would you pay for four months when you would only be charged for three? And besides, don't you want to check me out to see if I'M legit??! I promise you, if yer kid doesn't cut the mustard in the first month, I'll chuck him on his ass in the snow. I've done it before & not cried all night about it.

So there they are, these are my reasons. Do some Googling on the "Nigerian Scam" fields & you will find some startling similarties.

Read Todd's post above. The points he lists are the single largest methods in which someone begins this scam. And now I have one tailored to martial arts. I probably would have given it more credibility if he had actually mentioned both my name and styles.

In the shorthand, when I see birds flying south I know winter is coming. I don't have to wait until a snowball hits me to be sure.

[Bobster]

Ummm...Not to be dense here, KenpoDavid..But what the hell is a THACO??

[succubus]

i say just email the guy back and say "sorry, i don't teach anyone under the age of 21". that way, if it is a scam, you neatly avoid actually being scammed and if it's a legitimate request you have to refuse no those grounds anyway.

no need for a fuss. :)

[tellner]

Ummm...Not to be dense here, KenpoDavid..But what the hell is a THACO??

"To hit Armor Class 0" - Dungeons and Dragons sez I as the geek-o-meter explodes.

[Davey Bones]

"To hit Armor Class 0" - Dungeons and Dragons sez I as the geek-o-meter explodes.

My geek-o-mete is worse...

DnD doesn't use THACOs anymore.

On topic, yes, this reads scam. It's probably some bizarre money-making scam, just like the Nigerian ones. People will hopefully be smart enough not to respond to these things.

[TheDarkJester]

My geek-o-mete is worse...

DnD doesn't use THACOs anymore.

On topic, yes, this reads scam. It's probably some bizarre money-making scam, just like the Nigerian ones. People will hopefully be smart enough not to respond to these things.


Yup.. Core rules 3.5 I believe did away with it. My warmage pwns joo!

[Dave Humm]

Hi guys..

I will strongly suggest this is a scam to obtain visa rights to enter the US.

As an instructor within my own dojo I regularly organise seminars (mainly local but sometimes on a national scale) and I get emails all the time from people outside Europe asking me to essentially invite them to attend the seminar. The "invite" is normally them asking me to send them a letter with the details of the seminar to them directly (although the same information is normally available already online); any letter sent could quite easily be used to obtain a visa to enter the country. Essentially they're trying to get me to legitimise their reason for travelling.

Although I haven't had a request quite like that quoted by the original poster, I've had requests from sources in India, Mexico, and Africa for permission to become "students" in my dojo etc.

It’s a scam, do not send replies unless you really feel the request may be legitimate, and then, be very cautious.

Regards

[Bobster]

Holy crap, Dave, I didn't think about that...I get requests out the yang for people in other countries to have me invite them here to do seminars. Alot of times these are arts that I have nothing to do with, or no interest in, so I respond with a respectful decline. I never even knew this type existed, thanks for the heads up.

As far as action goes, I haven't responded at all...I don't want to encourage them by letting them know that they have indeed reached a legitamate email.

[Sgt_Major]

Best just delete it and dont reply at all....

[tellner]

Of course, if you'd rather have fun there are always the 419 eaters (http://www.419eater.com). A mutual friend has given me a very nice image that is suitable for sending to 419ers. Most are African. Many are more superstitious than they let on. It has veves, Cthulhu, and a really cool curse. I've gotten back threats, pleas to have the curse removed and their assurances that they've hired local witch doctors to send the curse back on me.

[Bobster]

Hah! He sent me that curse as well! I should start using it!!!!