On 20 June, Clive Bannister* called DG and suggested a repository for the funds: The London-based United Mercantile Credit & Investment Bank (UMCIB). "Bannister"* suggested that DG open an account with UMCIB into which the cash could be channeled. DG's next email to "Bannister"* is as follows:

Hi Clive,

I just faxed my cover letter, UCMIB form, and ID documents to them [United Mercantile Credit & Investment Bank]. I will follow up with a phone call to them aprox. 1000 your Monday.

Cheers,

D

----- Original Message -----
From: clive bannister*
To: DG
Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2004 11:43 AM
Subject: Re: Situation report

Hi D,

Schwecter is Moser's mothers maiden name. Pls keep me informed on the progress you make tomorrow regarding opening an account with UMCIB.

Clive

DG then received his first email from UMCIB. The advance fee fraud begins here:

21st June 2004

ATTENTION: DG

Dear Sir,

Your recent account application was succesful and your account needs to be activated, this account activation involves making of a minimum deposit into your account, this deposit remains yours and forms the first transaction on your account.

This deposit is mandatory for the following reasons:

1. As a result of you non-resident status here you are not subject to any local taxes and as such the costs of clearing the funds has to be present in your account first of all
2. The minimum deposit calculated based on the services to be rendered you is £4000.00[US$8,000.00] (FOUR THOUSAND POUNDS STERLING ONLY WHICH CONVERTED AT TODAY'S EXCHANGE RATE IS EIGHT THOUSAND US DOLLARS ONLY).
3. Once these funds are received and credited to your account, the Accounts Department would immediately issue you with your Account number and online Account Access from where you can transfer funds and or pay bills over the Internet.(This account Number Cannot be released to you until the minimum deposit is received)

This minimum deposit can be paid in one of two ways:
1. Bank To Bank Transfer: Usually Confirmable in 7-10 Working days
2. Direct Transfer: Usually Confirmable in 24Hours.

Once your account is activated we will send your your secure online logon via e-mail and also send our UMCIB WELCOME PACK (which contains your cheque book, debit cards and accompnying PIN by secure international courier).

Please note that at UMCIB, we use Relationship Managers, who are in-charge of individual accounts and who you will contact regarding your account from today.

Your Account Officer is:
James Cole
E-Mail: jcole@umcib.com
TEL: +44-7780 572 211

Please contact him immediately for details on how to activate your account.

ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK) 232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

DG's "Relationship Manager" quickly moved in for the kill:

Dear Sir,

Your account application was succesful and your account needs to be activated, this account activation involves making of a minimum deposit into your account, this deposit remains yours and forms the first transaction on your account.

This deposit is mandatory for the following reasons:
1. As a result of you non-resident status here you are not subject to any local taxes and as such the costs of clearing the funds has to be present in your account first of all
2. 2. Your account is set-up to handle sums over the minimum threshold of USD1,000,000.00 and as such the transaction would be scrutinised by the regulatory authorities here and questions would be asked as to the "Clean Source of Funds" being credited into an account with $0.00 Balance and no transaction history, delays would occur which could take as much as 90 Days to resolve.
3. The minimum deposit calculated based on the amount of your funds and the services to be rendered you is USD8,000.00 (Eight Thousand US Dollars Only).
4. Once these funds are received and credited to your account, I will prepare the requisite documentation and the Accounts Department would immediately issue you with your Account number and Online Account Access from where you can transfer funds and or pay bills over the Internet. (PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT CANNOT ISSUE YOU AN ACCOUNT NUMBER PRIOR TO THE RECEIPT OF YOUR MINIMUM DEPOSIT)

This minimum deposit can be paid in one of two ways:
1. Bank To Bank Transfer: Usually Confirmable in 7-10 Working days
2. Direct Transfer: Usually Confirmable in 24Hours.

Thank You,

James Cole
Relationship Manager
UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK)
232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

* the name falsely used by the 419 fraudsters - see start of article

There then followed a series of phone conversations between DG and Cole in which DG indicated that he could only raise $1000. Very kindly, Cole said he would see what he could do to come up with the balance. DG notes that this "sounded convincing enough to me because at this point I thought that UMCIB was a real bank!" Absolutely certain that he is about to hit the jackpot, DG presses on:

Dear Mr. Cole,

Thank you for your response and direction. My initial hope was to be able to deposit all the funds at once without starting off with the minimum deposit which is a problem for me at the moment. I will need to consider what I can do and will get back in touch with you via email as I understand the regulations you indicated.

Sincerely,

DG

At this point, Clive Bannister* re-enters, offering a lifeline which may save the deal:

Hi D,

I have been in meetings all day and will be leaving for Belfast tomorrow morning returning Thursday evening or Friday morning. I have received your instructions from UMCIB.

I'm also low on funds right now as I just paid schools fees for my kids but we should not let that slow us down or set us back a step after getting so close to receiving our fund.

I think for now, we should come together as one and see how much we can put together within the next 24-48hrs as we do not have time before we are contacted by UAM.

I should be able to put together the equivalent of $2000-$3000.You need try on your part to see how much you can come up with. I have the details for western union and as soon as we are able to put the fund together, I will send what I have to the bank as instructed. Do not let this slight hitch put you down as this is a minor hitch which we can overcome.

Please give it your best shot my friend and get back with me. I will be checking my email and voice mail regularly.

Best of luck,

Clive

Good as his word, "Bannister"* arranges for some funds to be transferred in DG's account, as UMCIB confirms:

Dear Sir,

This is to acknowledge receipt of US$2,000.00 deposited on your behalf by Paul Anderson.

The payment was made by Western Union to Thomas Baker and was received today 22nd June 2004.

Please make arrangements for the balance US$6,000.00 so we can completely activate your account.

James Cole
Relationship Manager
UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK)
232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

It appears that "Thomas Baker" is an agent of UMCIB. DG is completely suckered:

Dear Mr. Cole,

Please note that I have sent an additional installment of $1,000 U.S. to be credited towards the opening of my account. A copy of the Western Union Money Transfer is attached to this email. I am the sender from the U.S. and it was sent to Thomas Baker. The MTCN is XXX-XXX-XXXX. More installements will be coming in the days ahead to meet the $5,000 balance and your minimum requirement to open my account. Please acknowledge the completion of the transfer when done.

Regards,

DG

The Register has seen the money transfer documentation and has confirmed that the funds were transferred to a UK branch on 22 June and collected by Thomas Baker. Western Union declined - for reasons of data protection - to divulge where exactly the money was collected.

James Cole confirmed receipt of the $1,000 dollars:

Dear Sir,

I will instruct Mr. Baker to pick up the funds and add to your activating deposit.

Thus, you have a balance of US$5,000.00 to activate your account.

James Cole
Relationship Manager
UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK)
232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

At this point "Clive Bannister"* called DG and said that he had been able to secure the $5,000 dollar balance and had transferred it to UMCIB. Accordingly, the illicit funds would be transferred within 48 hours. Shortly afterwards, the big moment arrived:

Dear Sir,

US $8,370,000.00 has arrived here and you should have access to your account by Noon today.

James Cole
Relationship Manager
UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK)
232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

* the name falsely used by the 419 fraudsters - see start of article

DG had previously received a username and password for UMCIB's "e-banking" facilities. They were, inevitably, useless. DG rang Cole who was "very short indicating that it was at the end of the day and he would have his people look at the problem tomorrow".

To his credit, Cole did his best to help DG access his riches:

Dear Sir,

It appears your computer is not enabled to accept the software of our e-banking system.

Please carry out the following tasks, if it doesn't work then try from a different PC.
1.Click On Internet Explorer
2.Go to The TOOLS MENU
3.Go to Internet Options
4.Go to Advanced
5.Scroll down the list and Click/Tick the check box enabling Java
6. Restart Your Computer
7. Log on to UMCIB and go to e-banking then enter your usernameand password, this will take you to the transfer page.

If this doesnt work, please call me, my direct line is: +44-778 057 2211.

Thank you

James Cole
Relationship Manager
UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK)
232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

The penny has still not dropped. DG persists:

Dear Mr. Cole,

I apologize for mistaking your first name on the phone. Thank you for your direct phone number. I called the bank during your business hours a few days ago and received a recording.

Persuant to our phone conversation, I cannot access E-Banking or my account:
1. All Java applets are enabled on I.E. ver. 6.0.28
2. The result is the same on several computers
3. According to the coding on the web page there is nothing there to read.

Therefore the problem is not my computers or network. Additionally I have some unanswered questions.

When will I receive materials in the mail regarding the account and the "package" described on your website? Credit Card? Information on UCMIB? Procedures? Frankly I was expecting a more pronounced and pro-active response from UCMIB and I am not looking forward to any more delays. I have business to conduct which is now at a standstill.

I look forward to the resolution on Friday. I can be reached by phone in the U.S. anytime after 1600 GMT.

Sincerely,

DG

To which Cole replied:

Dear Sir,

Your welcome pack was sent out on Wednesday when your account access information was sent.

The accounts department insist that there is no problem from here and the problem is from your end.

They have advised that you try from an entirely different computer to those on your network as it appears our e-banking system is being restricted/inhibited by a program or the like on your system.

I apologize for the delays and inconvenience.

James Cole
Relationship Manager
UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK)
232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

At this point, DG becomes increasingly desperate and apparently unwilling to contemplate the unthinkable:

Dear Mr. Cole,

I will go to a library or something today and try it from there. I must say there is no other place on the Internet where I have this problem. Also the URL prefix is HTTP not HTTPS. This indicates that this is not even a secure site to begin with so how could it be an "E-Banking" access page?

Additionally I have asked a few associates at other locations to view the page on their computers and they see exactly the same thing, a page with a blank frame and no square to enter any information. This includes a site in the UK.

Therefore the problem remains...how can the problem be on this end? It seems to be everywhere else as well and doesn't compute.

Please address this issue with them. I am standing by. Thank you for your help.

Sincerely,

DG

DG quickly followed up the above with:

To: Mr. James Cole Re: E-Banking

In following with my last email regarding your "E-Banking" and my account, I have personally gone to the library and several other sites in different locations with assorted versions of operating systems and browsers. Additionally I have had associates from around the world check from their locations for the possibility of logging in to an account on the "E-Banking" page of your website. All the results are the same. The "E-Banking" page is blank and non-functional. The continued claim from your people for more than two days that nothing is wrong defies all logic and is obviously in error.

Additionally I have not received the "Welcome Package" or the return phone call from you I requested in my previous email. The casual and non-responsive attitude to seriously resolve this issue has erroded any confidence I previously had in UCMIB or it's credibility as an institution.

This issue needs to be resolved by July 3 at 1400 GMT.

Respectfully,

DG

Despite DG's growing anger, Cole remained calm:

Dear Sir,

I apologise most sincerely for the delays and your inability to access your account, however it is not a problem from our end as the system shows that everything is working perfectly and you are the only one with this problem, please try again and if the system persists please let me know.

James Cole
Relationship Manager
UNITED MERCHANTILE CREDIT & INVESTMENT BANK(UK)
232 Great Eastern Street, London EC2A 6HQ UK

Finally, DG realised that he had been fleeced:

Mr. James Cole,

As I stated in my previous message the problem is not on my end. I am not the only one with the problem. Attempted access from multiple points around the world indicated the same problem. Your "E-Banking" page is nothing more than a blank web page. I have been patient and there has been no resolution.

I have received no welcome package nor from your response do I expect that I will. Your repetition of the same stand demonstrates nothing more than a delay tactic. It is now obvious what has happened here and it is time to get all the regulatory and legal authorities envolved in both our countries.

Sincerely,

DG

DG received no further correspondence from Cole, or any other member of the 419 gang. His $1,000 was gone and his chances of recouping his cash were zero.

Related link

In the very likely event that www.umcib.com ceases to be, we have a screen grab of its main page available here.

Bootnote

We thought we'd throw a bit of money away ourselves, and contacted the owner of www.umcib.com via the email address on the registration details to ask if he was willing to sell:

Hi there -

I got your email address from the whois register record for the domain www.umcib.com.

Myself and my colleagues were wondering whether you'd be interested in selling the domain to us. You see, we run a business called Uxbridge MotorCycle Injector Brotherhood - a sort of informal club.

We have, however, gathered quite a tidy sum from our 7,000 members to establish a website, hence this email to you. Suffice it to say we would be willing to pay a very reasonable price if you will release the domain to us.

Thanks you,

Big Lesley
Chairman
Uxbridge MotorCycle Injector Brotherhood

It seems strange that "Simon Williams" has not even had the courtesy to reply to our email. After all, there's hard cash on the table here ...®

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