E-mail from sgt. Fletcher

[Bram]

Good day,

 My name is Sgt John Fletcher , I am a British soldier, I am serving in the military of the 1st Armored Division in Iraq, As you know we are being attacked by insurgents everyday and car bombs.We managed to move funds belonging to Saddam Hussien's family. The total amount is US$25 Million dollars in cash, mostly 100 dollar bills. We want to move this money to you,so that you may invest it for us and keep our share for banking.We will take 50%, my partner and I. You take the other 50%. no strings attached, just help us move it out of Iraq, Iraq is a warzone. We plan on using diplomatic courier and shipping the money out in one large silver box, using diplomatic immunity.

 If you are interested I will send you the full details, my job is to find a good partner that we can trust and that will assist us. Can I trust you? When you receive this letter,kindly send me an e-mail signifying your interest including your most confidential telephone/fax numbers for quick communication also your contact details. This business is risk free. The box can be shipped
out in 48hrs.

Respectfully,

Sgt John Fletcher

Aside from the fact that the 1st armored division, or the Old Ironsides, are a division of the US army (stationed in German Wiesbaden) and not the British army (who coincidentally spelled it as '1st armoUred division, before it was disbanded in 1993), how do a pair of army men get 'diplomatic immunity' for a box? I thought people got that. And even then, I always kinda assumed it was sort of an exclusive thing for, well, you know, diplomats.

It had better be a large silver box, too. The 250,000 hundred dollar notes will weigh over 550 lbs, and assuming the box is 1 foot by 1 foot in diameter, it would have to be over 10 feet long. For a box that size the silver has to be at least a tenth of an inch thick, which would mean the box alone would weigh at least 250 lbs. That's an >800 lbs silver coffin they're trying to get diplomatic immunity for.

By the way, this is the only Sgt. John Fletcher the internet could come up with:



He's the 5th guy from the left, and was captured by the Germans when the "Black Widow" bomber was shot down in February of 1944.

This is merely the most interesting twist I've seen on the 'Nigerian dictator' scam, which I receive once a week, on average. The reason I posted this, is that I'd like to discuss why people even send these out. I mean, do people actually fall for this stuff? I seriously can't imagine people are THAT stupid. Any thoughts?

[Dozer]

First, "silver" can also refer to the color, indicating that the money will be shipped out in a large, polished aluminium box, which is likely to be found among the items used by the US or British military in Iraq. As they say, rise and shine -- that's also true for boxes.

Second, luggage items can be tagged as "diplomatic luggage, do not check". The "diplomatic courier" our British soldier friends want to use could also be a person, so immunity is a possibility.

Third, it makes perfect sense that in a war-ravaged country like Iraq, a cash-less money transfer is unviable.

Fourth, there are more persons by the name of "Sgt John Fletcher" than you think. One, for example, can be traced back as the ancestor of Chester William Sowles, who is listed as #545 on the member's list of the "Sons of the Revolution", Illinois. I was unable to locate one in active service, though, but with the current recruiting effort by the US military, there might well be one.

Fifth, maybe he is British by origin, or uses that as a cover alias to confuse eventual spies looking for the money.

All this makes me seriously consider to take up his offer. After all, a soldier who can regularly e-Mail from Iraq must have some resources!

[Bram]

I was unable to locate one in active service, though, but with the current recruiting effort by the US military, there might well be one.

The T.O.P.I.C. active military personnel database came up blank.