Dear Partner,
First, I must solicit your strictest confidence in this transaction. This is by virtue of its nature as being utterly Confidential and "top secret." We are top officials of the Federal Government Contract Review Panel who are interested in importation of goods into our country with funds that are presently trapped in Nigeria. In order to commence this business we solicit your assistance to enable us transfer into your account the said-trapped funds.

The source of this funds is as follows: During the last Military Regime here in Nigeria, the Government officials set up companies and awarded themselves contracts which were grossly over-invoiced in various ministries. The present Government set up a Contract Review Panel and we have identified a lot of inflated contracts funds which are presently floating in the Central Bank of Nigeria ready for payment. However, by virtue of our positions as civil servants and members of this panel, we cannot acquire this money in our names. I have therefore, been delegated as a matter of trust by my colleagues of the panel to look for an overseas partner into whose account we would transfer the sum of US$21,320,000.00 (Twenty One Million, Three Hundred and Twenty U.S Thousand Dollars) Hence we are writing you this letter.

We have agreed to share the money thus:
1. 20% for the Account owner (you)
2. 70% for us (The officials)
3. 10% to be used in settling taxation and all local and foreign expenses.

It is from the 70% that we wish to commence the importation business. Please, note that this transaction is 100% safe and we hope to commence the transfer latest seven (7) banking days from the date of the receipt of the following information by Fax:  your Banker's name, company's name, address, Account number, and fax number.

The above information will enable us write letters of claims and jobs description respectively. This way we will use your company's name to apply for payment and re-award the contract in your company's name. We are looking forward to doing this business with you and solicit your confidentiality in this transaction

We have discussed your response and we will proceed without any reservation to bring you into the complete picture of the pending project. Before doing this, we would again like to reiterate the importance of confidentiality, as we are career civil servants and would not like our names to be brought to odium , or our long tenure in office to be jeopardized.

The US$21,320,000.00 was obviously kept aside by officials of the previous administration of our country. Based on common knowledge, it is apparent that these officials' intention could have been to transfer these over-invoiced sums to private Swiss accounts for their personal use. This position , we are sure about , because in our course of review of contracts awarded and paid for , the officials did not enter any records of the funds. This manifest nothing else but the apparent fact that the funds were to be transferred out for personal use by these officials. In our country, this practice by successive regimes is of common knowledge and has been a canker-worm eating deep into our governmental structure. That we were able to discover the funds, is because the officials had not already lifted the funds out, before they were removed from office, when the mantle of leadership in our country changed. Had they already lifted the funds out before the change of power, there is no way anybody would have ever discovered that such funds ever existed.

We were appointed to the Contract Review Panel (C.R.P.) to review all payments effected for contracts executed in the tenure of the last regime, and given also the exclusive mandate to validate payment claims for contracts executed, and for which payment has not been made by our government, and where we are satisfied about the bona-fide of such claims, to go ahead and issue such approval for the payment of the concerned contract amount to the contractors. In other words, it is our exclusive responsibility to validate all contract payment claims and approve the payment for such claim, for contracts done for any Federal Government statutory corporation in our country.

After we (C.R.P.) have given such approvals, we would then forward the file to the Task Force on contracts payment release for their approval and their subsequent forwarding of the file to the Federal Ministry of Finance (F.M.F.) which is the authority that issues the last approval for the payment release to the concerned contractor. The last approval issued by the FMF is called the EXCHANGE CONTROL APPROVAL ORDER NUMBER. The approvals by the Task Force and the FMF are more or less a bureaucratic procedure of contract payment release. Once our contract claim has been approved by the CRP, the two other bodies are bound to issue their subsequent approvals without further validation. The E.C.A.O. No. is the authority which confirms the entitlement of a contractor to the funds covered by this number and subsequently authorizing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to transfer the funds to the concerned contractors bank account. The CBN is the banker of all our Federal Statutory Corporations.

Having these US$21,320,000.00 floating , our ordinary duty would have been to ensure that the funds are returned to our Government coffers. However, we will not do this, because of the very nature of our Government structure. Our reasons are not far fetched. It may surprise you to know that if we return the funds into Government coffers, rather than give us kudos for a job well done, they would rather engage in a systematic manipulation to get us out of the CRP and would even go as far as creating made up circumstances, all with a view of bringing us to disrepute and discredit us , so as to allow space for them to transfer the funds to their own accounts, for their personal use. Even if we cry out that we have found US$21,320,000.00 floating, and this was why we were set up and removed from the CRP, nobody would believe us. Our Governmental structure, we have learnt from previous experiences, has no respect for genuine and patriotic commitment to the development of our fatherland. It is more of a grab what you can , while you are still there. We are sort of philosophical and highly sensitive about this opportunity to better our lives and provide for our children's future in this extremely corrupted society of ours , where the societal fabric is structured to tacitly push the descendants of the monetarily less advantaged to perpetual impoverishment and ultimate enslavement to the aspirations of the corrupt overlords and their descendants.

You can therefore see reasons with us, as to why we can not allow this opportunity to slip us by, especially since we are influentially capable by reason of our official position at the CRP to see the lifting of the funds out of our country 100% risk-free, for our use. It is on this basis that we have sought your assistance in total cooperation and confidentiality towards a 100% risk free achievement of the transfer of the funds into your account for us all , to be shared amongst us in the ratio set out in our letter to you.

Our perfected modalities for the transfer of the funds , is for the transfer to be made in the capacity of a contract payment to your company (on behalf of us all) , for a contract that would be perceived officially, to have been done by your company for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (N.N.P.C ). To this effect, we are emailling along with this message, a SPECIMEN APPLICATION for the claims of the funds. You should transcribe the specimen on your letter headed paper and fax back to us promptly. With the presentation of the claims on your letter headed paper, the official position would be that your company executed the contract OBWE / SI / 203- C98 for the NNPC and for which it was entitled to US$21,320,000.00 which is the contract price. Immediately we receive the application , (duly transcribed specimen on your letter head) from you , we would officially validate the claim here at the CRP as your contract entitlement and thereafter, forward the file to the Presidential Task Force on contract payment release for their approval . They then pass the file over to the FMF for the issuance of the EXCHANGE CONTROL APPROVAL ORDER NUMBER. The entire process of the funds release and transfer would be officiallised totally and documented to ensure total legitimacy as obtains in ordinary cases of contract payment transfer by the CBN. We would also register your company here in our country as a prerequisite to the transfer of the funds to you. Protocol demands that, you as government contractor should have your company registered here with the Corporate Affairs Commission as well the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation where the contract was officially issued. To this end, we have on stand by, government officials at the Corporate Affairs Commission as well as the N.N.P.C. who would help us bring about a speedy registration of your company. We would also pay a back log of your company Taxes for the past years your company has been operating over here as all documents relating to your company would indicate that your company has been in existence over here for some time now. All documents would be back dated to reflect the actual period this project was executed and as soon as we have them secured, I would fax copies to you. This would be our responsibility. The total officialization of the process would cater for enquiry (if any) by your bankers as to the source of the funds when it arrives your account (for us all), as your bankers can verify directly from the CBN if they wish. The process of the transfer would be a bank to bank affair. Be doubly assured.

Before the release of the funds to your account however, you, as the chief executive would be expected to come over here to sign the necessary Funds Release Document (F.R.D.) We would not want you to come over here for any reason whatsoever as you might likely be requested upon your arrival here, to take some of the government officials responsible for payment to you, to the contract site where this project was actually executed by you. Even if we are to lecture you on how best to respond to whatever questions asked of you, we are not sure that you would confidently tackle the issue of the contract site where you executed the contract. We thus feel it would be too risky for you to come over here [ I'll say!] and to this end, arrangements would be made for the Documents to be signed by you in one of our Government's Offshore Signing Centres. In other words, upon the receipt of your Application duly transcribed on your letter headed paper, we would immediately set to work so as to settle all issues relating to this project over here and promptly have the funds pushed out of this country. You would then be left with the responsibility of securing the funds in your account on our collective behalf by proceeding as the Chief Executive of the company, to the government Offshore Signing Centre to endorse the necessary documents. There is one centre each in every continent [ no kidding... ] and we are of the hope that you would be asked to appear in a Signing Centre within your continent America. This is all we ask of you. Having taken care of all issues relating to this transaction on this end and with the successful transfer of the funds out upon validation and approval of your claim, you have nothing to worry about regarding your appearance at the Signing Centre. We guarantee you this.

In the interest of bolstering confidentiality at this stage of commencement of the project, we advise that you should for now stall whatever discussion you may wish to have with your bankers in respect of your expectation of the funds until we advise otherwise, at such a time better for our firm peace of mind as the direct participants of the project because we want to close monitor all affairs to ensure absolute preservation of the 100% risk free theme, with which we want to set sail.

We would like to inform you as well that all modalities have been put in place, so that immediately the funds arrive your account (for us all) and all bureaucratic matters on the part of your bankers have been settled, we shall immediately retrieve all documentation relating to this project and the transfer and destroy them. As the sole custodians of all the files of the contract payment which has been settled to the concerned contractor, once the entire US$21,320,000.00 has been confirmed by you in your account, the CBN would return the entire file of OBWE/SI/203-C98 to us (CRP) for our safe keeping as the established custodians of such files. We will then retrieve the file and destroy it. The funds can never be traced. Please advise us on any peculiar banking issues on your side, of which we need to take cognisance before we commence on the project.

[never trust anyone who uses the word modality twice in one letter

We would like to also inform you that our entire 70% share would be used by us in the importation of Agro-Allied machineries and petro-chemical prospecting equipment, as we cannot afford to bring it back into our country in the form of cash. This also emanates from the fact that our involvement in this transaction must never be made known as it might jeopardize the success of this transaction Please understand that all internal expenses will be taken care of by us, while you shall take care of all external expenses. In addition to your 20% share of the funds, any expenses incurred by you, will be reimbursed to you after the transfer, from the 10% which we have agreed to use in settling all expenses incurred in the course of bringing the project to a 100% risk free success. You must however give us prior notice of any such expenses before engaging in it. This is very important for the preservation of our solidarity as a non-underminable tool, which if we hold steadfast to, with total understanding of the mutual benefit for us all, we will definitely anchor our ship at our desired destination, being 100% risk free success. We count very much on your cooperation.

Please remember the essential of confidentiality, as the advantage accruable to us from our strict compliance to it, can never be over emphasised.

Once again, thank you for your quick response and we hope for an immediate commencement of this transaction once we receive the necessary banking details duly transcribed on your letter head paper.

Please advise us in your return fax, if your line for receiving this message is perfectly confidential for the purpose of this project. If not, please make arrangements for an alternative one, as most of our communication would be by fax, to prevent the possibility of anybody listening in on our conversation.

Endeavor to call me on my confidential Telephone line 234 1 7752230, 234-90-408296, and Fax 234-1-7596164. We await your urgent response to enable us commence the project officially, as time is of equal essence as confidentiality.

Best Regards, [no name]

N.B: It is imperative that we engage in a verbal discussion on Telephone so that I can use the opportunity to further explain the issues already highlighted in this email message. My office hours are between 7:00 hours G.M.T and 17:00 hours G.M.T. which is between 8 am and 6 pm my local time. I await your most urgent call.

SPECIMEN APPLICATION WHICH YOU SHOULD TRANSCRIBE ON YOUR COMPANY LETTERHEAD FILL IN YOUR NOMINATED BANK ACCOUNT INFORMATION AND FAX BACK TO US .

THE CHAIRMAN
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA
CONTRACTS REVIEW PANEL
FEDERAL SECRETARIAT COMPLEX ( ANNEX )
IKOYI
LAGOS - NIGERIA.

ATTN: DR. T. S. ADEDIPE ( MRS )

Dear Madam ,
RE: INVOICE NUMBER : OBWE / SI / 203-C98
SUPPLY AND INSTALLATION OF HEAVY DUTY CALIBRATORS AND CRUDE OIL PASSAGE DRILLING MACHINES. LAYING OF OIL PIPELINES FOR NNPC/ PPMC SITES AT ONNE AND BORI IN RIVERS STATE, WARRI AND ESCRAVOS IN DELTA STATE. TELEGRAPHIC TRANSFER OF PAYMENT DUE, BEING, TWENTY ONE MILLION, THREE HUNDRED AND TWENTY THOUSAND UNITED STATES DOLLARS ONLY.(US$21,320,000.00). We refer to the above mentioned invoice number , and inform you that the settlement of this bill has been due since November 1998. We are hereby submitting the bill for your immediate settlement to us. Due to the delay in the settlement of this bill since 1998 , we have been unable to meet with our obligations to our bankers and creditors who financed the projects. Please effect from the 4th of November 1998 to the date of final payment. Payment should be made by telegraphic transfer, through any of your first class correspondent banks in the United States of America, or Great Britain , to our bankers below ;

NAME OF OUR BANKERS .
ADDRESS OF OUR BANKERS
ACCOUNT NAME
ACCOUNT NUMBER
SWIFT CODE
BANKERS TELEPHONE
BANKERS FAX
BANKERS TELEX

Please expedite action on this matter , to enable us update our records with your corporation , the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ( NNPC ), and meet up with our obligations to our bankers and creditors .

Yours Faithfully,
( YOUR NAME , SIGNATURE , AND OFFICIAL SEAL )

CC.
THE DIRECTOR
EXPLORATION AND PROJECTS DEPARTMENT
NIGERIAN NATIONAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION
FALOMO OFFICE COMPLEX
IKOYI - LAGOS

THE DEBT RECONCILLIATION OFFICER
DEBT RECONCILIATION COMMITTEE
PRESIDENTIAL TASK FORCE ON CONTRACT PAYMENT GARKI - ABUJA ( FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY )

THE DIRECTOR
FOREIGN OPERATIONS DEPARTMENT
CENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA
TINUBU SQUARE - LAGOS.

If you actually read that, you have a lot of endurance.