This is story about email spam. I, the webmaster for this site, experienced/received the most believable email on December, 30, 2010.  The email looked like it came from shipmate, Jane Doe, whom he has been communicating with for a couple years. (Names will be changed). The email was worded just as  the shipmate would write. Jane used "hotmail.com".

Hotmail.com:

Hotmail service is free to anyone who wishes to use it and it has become one of the most popular free web based e-mail services on the internet. This is due largely to its large storage space and extra features like POP3 access and chat. Of course, Hotmail is also very attractive to cyber stalkers and like other web based e-mail services, is popular among those who use e-mail to send uninvited harassing or annoying messages to others.

This means that somebody has been reading Jane's email and who she has been talking to, like me.

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The 1st email:

From: John and Jane Doe [mailto:doejj@hotmail.com]
Sent: Thursday, December 30, 2010 5:02 AM
To: John and Jane Doe
Subject: NEED HELP!!!

 I'm writing this with tears in my eyes,my family and I came down here to (Cardiff Wales) United Kingdom, for a short vacation unfortunately we were mugged at the park of the hotel where we stayed, all cash, credit cards and cell were stolen off us but luckily for us we still have our passports with John was beaten up by the mugger because he wanted to protect us.

I have been to the embassy and the Police here but they're not helping issues at all and our flight leaves pretty soon from now but we're having problems settling the hotel bills and the hotel manager won't let us leave until we settle the bills. your contribution will go along way here. Please be so kind to reply back so i can tell you what to do and how to get some cash to us...

Am freaked out at the moment.

  Jane

At this point I kind of wondered why she would ask me for help.  I call Jane's home, no answer. I called her mother, no answer.
So I actually replied:

How come you didn't ask your mother in Wisconsin?

The 2nd email:

Glad you replied back, We have nothing left on us right now and we're lucky to have our life and passports with us it would have been worse if they had made away with our passports.  Don’t have access to our phones since it got lost to the muggers, we are literally stranded out here and need your help to get back home. Well all we need now is just $2,300 you can have it wired to my name via Western Union i'll have to show my passport as ID to pick it up here and i promise to pay you back as soon as we get back home. Here's my info below.

 
Name. Jane Doe

City: Cardiff Wales.

Postal Code: HP11 2JZ

Country: United Kingdom.

As soon as it has been done, kindly get back to me with the confirmation. number Let me know if you are heading to the WU outlet
 
Jane

Well - here I knew it was a scam. So, seeing that postal code, I thought maybe we could catch them - well guess again.
I emailed the police in Wales, British Islands. I found they speak in two languages there, Welsh and English.

EMAIL TO POLICE IN CARDIFF, WALES
                                                                                        

'Cardiff@south-wales.pnn.police.uk'                                                12-30-2010   8:44 a.m.  PST

 

I have received an email – supposedly from John and Jane Doe, U.S. Citizens from Illinois – asking for help because they had been robbed. I Included both email contents from spamer and  the replie –what about your mother?

South Wales Police Eastern BCU;
                                                                     

Cardiff Bay Police Station / James Street, Cardiff Bay                                        12-31-2010    12:05 a.m PST

Thank you for your e-mail, I have forwarded it for the attention of our Contact Management Centre.

Regards

Sue Fox 50231
Heddlu De Cymru URhS Y Dwyrain; Gorsaf Heddlu Bae Caerdydd; Stryd James,BaeCaerdydd (Welsh)

And finally this morning:

Contact Management Centre,                                                                                 12-31-2010  5:35 a.m. PST

101 House Oaktree Court Cardiff Gate Business Park Cardiff CF23 8RS

 

Dear Mr Bouwman

 

Thank you for your recent E Mail.

 

As you seem to have identified this is a scam attempting to defraud you of money. Fortunately you have not fallen for this and not become the victim of a crime.

These are normally know as 419 frauds which can be referenced via the internet and often come from Nigeria

 

The details of the Cardiff address listed is incorrect HP11 2JX is not a Cardiff post code.  There are millions of these e mails circulating world wide, apparently the scam works by sending money via Western Union which, with the correct reference number, can be collected from any of their offices anywhere in the world. As such this in an impossible scam to investigate, and our advice is not to enter into any communication whatsoever with these persons.

 

As stated, fortunately you have not become a victim of this scam, but from a South Wales Police point of view there are no further enquiries which we can make into the matter, and our advice to not to enter into any further communication with these persons.

 

King regards for a Happy New Year

 

Yours sincerely

Gaynor Edwards A/PS 4545

 

Canolfan Rheoli Cysylltiadau, Ty 101 Cwrt y Dderwen Parc Busnes Porth, Caerdydd, Caerdydd (Welsh) CF23 8RS         Tel / Ffon : 029 20222111 Ext/Est / 71002

Moral of the story: DON'T  CONTACT THE POLICE UNLESS YOU HAVE SOMETHING THEY CAN WORK WITH!                                   Vern