Au Pair Scam - Mrs. Elizabeth M. Schneider

I'm sorry to say they are both definitely scams. In the 2nd email, the scammer can't even keep the name of the "kids" straight!

Notice how entire sentences and sections of the two emails are identical. The two emails are variations of the same script.

Please just discard these emails. Do not reply to these scammers.

thank you dotti.

What are you thinking about this?Thank you very much for helping me.I am new in the job finding in other countries.


> From: [email protected]
> Subject: Laura Tammy ?i-a trimis un mesaj pe Facebook...
>
> Laura ?i-a trimis un mesaj.
>
> --------------------
> Subiect: Saw your profile on http://www.facebook.com/l/67fdc;Aupair.com
>
> I am a Mrs Laura Tammy i work for the United Emirate Air Line and i travel all around the Europe due to my type of work and i am to resume at work anytime from March and i cant leave my children all alone cos my Husband is Marine Engineer who do go from Monday to Friday and come back weekend and we have two kids.there fore i saw your post that you will like to be an Au Pair.
>
> CHILDREN'S DETAILS: NAME: AGE: SEX:
> Caroline 3YRS FEMALE
> Ashely 6YRS FEMALE
>
>
>
> FAMILY INTEREST : THE KIDS LOVE PLAYING WITH MUSICAL EQUIPMENTS AT HOME LIKE PIANO AND MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS,AT NIGHT THEY LOVE WATCHING MOVIES AND EDUCATIVE VIDEO FILMS.LIKE THE PARENTS LIKE WEEKEND EXCURSIONS AND VISITING.
>
>
> AU PAIRS DETAILS:WORKING HOURS PER WEEK : 30-35 HOURS {MONDAYS -FRIDAYS}
>
> BREAKDOWN OF THE WORKING HOURS: 8am-9am get children ready for school;11am-12pm get the children's room tidy before they return from school; 1pm-3pm vacuum and dust house; 3pm-5pm pick up kids from school and prepare their meals; 6pm-7pm play with the kids.and you could do other job and earn extra income when my kids are in school for you go to a language school so it depend on you.
>
> MONTHLY SALARY : $1,500 { Without non payment of taxes}
>
> FREE TIME: Minimum of 2 days per week usually Saturdays and Sundays
>
> HOLIDAY ENTITLEMENTS: 1 week's holiday for each 26 weeks resident at family home.
>
>
>
> ACCOMMODATION: You will live in a room well furnished with modern and Internet facilities.
> ARRIVAL TO USA: We will pick you up at the International airport of Florida on your arrival.
>
> Let me here back from you as soon as possible.
>
>
> Regards
>
> Laura Tammy
> [email protected]

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:01:17 -0800
Subject: Re: hi
From: [email protected]


Thanks for your response, My kids and i are very happy to hear from you, we've prepared your apartment, and every thing as been set, my family and i will be responsible for your feeding
over-here, as you would be paid $1,500 monthly without Tax. We want you to get back to us if you are willing to work you can go check our pictures on Facebook.

Regarding your traveling, we want you to contact the agency that will be helping you with
your Visa and Working permit. [email protected]
We also want you to know we need you to come work for us as soon as possible, we are willing to pay half of your traveling expenses regarding your Flight Ticket here in Florida.

Here is Our Address:

Jessy Smith
(Marine Aquarium)
1600 Ken Thompson Parkway,
Sarasota, FL 34236
United states

Get back to us as soon as you here back from them, because we need you to start as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, it's another complete scam.

The "travel agency" is fake. They have just opened a free email address to look like a travel agent. The "travel agent" will require that you pay fees for your visa and tickets (notice how they said they would pay half, setting it up so they can charge you for "the other half"), most likely by wire transfer. They will continue to come up with more fees as long as you are paying, then they will disappear.

There is no job. The language tells me that these people are not, and have never been, in the United States. The types of mistakes place this scammer in Africa, as expected.

Hi i received an email regarding an offer to be an au pair in UK. Please read the email below and tell me if it is a scam. thank you very much for the help.

Hello Aupair applicant,

How are you doing?... am James Bill 41 years an independent contractor from united kingdom,i live at 30 St Martin's Ln London, WC2N, United Kingdom with my

little boy kelvin he's 4years old,my ex aupair will be going back to continue with her studies so while checking on some profile at the {aupair site} i came

across yours i couldn't resist it would love to have you as my kid aupair.


Will want you to be doing some household chores,laundry,cook,send / pick up him in school and back home to take shower and do some indoor/outdoor activities.

You will have your Private Room which would consist Air-Conditional, Television, 24 hours Internet Access and a Telephone to always keep you in touch with

your friends, families and probably relatives, a Bathroom and Toilet. You will have Sundays as your off days, so to enable you have enough time for yourself

with a weekly payment of 750 pounds.

Please get back to me would be looking forward in hearing from you soonest

warms regards
Mr James Bill & Family

James Bill ([email protected])

Welcome to Scamwarners dwi afriati.

This is a definite scam - please cease all contact with this scammer.

This guide here may help http://www.scamwarners.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=3019

Thank You for posting this information - it will alert and save others. Well Done

Please post any questions or concerns - we will help you all we can.

Hello,
I think I've been scammed also.
I have the same letter as you had the difference is the name, the age of son and the dates. I just received this letter few days ago and I just chat the Host Family according to her a few hours ago. But then suddenly I became doubtful about her. The Job is quite good and the letter is so convincing as well as her Instant messages. Suddenly Im thinking what is the use of new technologies we have now, so I rather research this name Angela Lewis in the net but difficult to find because there's a lot of Angela Lewis name in the world but Im thankful that I found this site and surprisingly the same letter and agency appeared! Here's the letter from Host family named Angela Lewis:

Hello Au pair,
How are u doing today?thanks for the e-mail,I saw your Profile on an Au pair site, read your profile and i think you are just the perfect Nanny am looking for to be taking care of our son.It my pleasure writing you about my family and i will be very glad if u can accept my offer..We are a family from UK,Am Mrs Angela Lewis am 42 years old,My contact address is 4 Luxborough St Paddington, Greater London NW1 5, UK.Am a Widow,I lost my husband when he got an auto accident on is way coming back from church last year June.
I work as an accountant at HSBC Banks,We are having just 1 son Lucas,7 years old,I need a very good,honest,caring,understanding and God fearing Au pair Nanny for him,Am in need of a Nanny because our Nanny had to go back to her country cos her mother was very sick and her attention was needed,I close very later from work and ever since our Nanny left my son have been staying with my mother and she stays about 2 hours drive but i will like him to be staying with us and that is why i will like to know if you are interested in taking care of my son while i am off to work.
You will not be working too much at home in the house at all..you will be taking the kid to school and bringing him back home, play with him, go to museums, playground, watching movies, prepare/serving their snacks and foods,you can use my car to do that if u don't have u can quickly get that over here if u can drive,U can attend a driving school over here if u cant drive cos i need it.I am also ready to assist you if you wish to go to English school,so to improve your English standard level..
You will be staying with us so you don't have to worry about where you will be staying when you get here cos we leave in a big house that has lots of rooms and i am sure you will like our place and also your room,You will have your Private Room which will have Bathroom, Toilet, Television, Air-Conditional. You will have access to the Internet and a Telephone at home to get in touch with your friends and loved ones. You will be having Fridays,Saturdays and Sundays as your off days,you will be having all the privacy you want so you have nothing to worry about,so to enable you have enough time for yourself.

My offer for you will be 350 POUNDS for your weekly pocket money,and plus 950 POUNDS for monthly.Which i think is okay for you After when i see that you work very well i shall increase your salary and that does not include you to pay any taxes cos i will be taking care of that.There is another Au pair around the town that you can pass time with so that you will not be able to feel lonely,Sometimes when Lucas go to school.I will be more than happy to have you working for us and i will be waiting to read your reply to know if you are ready to work for us. WORK DESCRIPTION: Your services would be needed for as long as you which to start with my family.
I need someone who is Honest,Caring,Trustworthy,Loving,Affectionate,Concerned,Understanding and Loves Children is friendly and that have God fearing for my son cos i really love him and i can't afford to let him get hurt.I can assure you that when you come you will be treated like one family and you will be very happy to work with my family.It took me so long to get this pictures scan for you cos i am having problem with my scanner....The first and the last Pictures is a preschool graduation of Lucas to k-5 ,the 2nd is 2007 Christmas, the 3rd is when he was born lol,and the last,This was Christmas when he was about three years old.Hope u like the pictures,i miss my husband looking at this pictures everyday it makes me cry,well If you think you have interest in my family and got this attractive,That our family is a kind of family you are looking for don't Hesitate to reply me asap i also like to have your cell phone number plus area in your reply so we can move on to the next step..

QUESTIONS:
1. How many Years of experience do you have as an AU PAIR/Nanny?
2. How was the last family with like?
3. Have you ever traveled overseas?
4. Can u speak English?
5. Can u cook and Drive?
6. How much are you budgeting for your Travel?, Can you pay all funds for the processing of your traveling document ?


My yahoo messenger IM: angelaluv20 , you can add me to your list so we can chat more better.

Hope to hear from you soon.
Best regards
Angela Lewis
[/b]

Then..her reply after I accepted already her offer:

Hello,
Thanks for the swift response,How are you?Hope fine,I am really happy to read your reply,It really bring a smile to both my face,becos we both read your reply together and we are very glad for accepting my offer,we are very happy indeed,
Like i have said in my previous e-mail,You will not be working too much at home in the house at all..you will be taking the Lucas to school and bringing him back home, play with him, go to museums, playground, watching movies, prepare/serving their snacks and foods.You can use my Camry car to do that when you get here.There is an Opportunity for you to attend a Driving school and also English School to improve the standard level of your experience in Both driving and English.
I would like to know if you are ready to work with my family,I don't want any further delay on how you will get here,so i would like to know if you do have a UK Valid visa and working permit.If you don't have a UK vaid visa and work permit.You don't need to look any further cos i want to introduce you to one of my Designated Travel agency that made it possible for my last Au pair Lilly from Chile...The agency is good and legal i am sure they will help you out.here is there contact below:
EMAIL: [email protected]
All you have to do is to send them an email and make inquiries on all what you need to provide to be able to come hear in UK and work for me as an Au pair/Nanny,don't forget to tell them you are from me and i will contact them too all about how they can make it possible for you to be here,And also to alert you the fact that i will help you pay half of the payment the agency may ask you to pay,just to tell you how urgent and serious I need you here for my son to work for my family as an Au pair, I want you to know that am not counting you as my Au pair only,to me you are also one of my family member cos the job is already yours. hope you'll like the kid.I will be very grateful if you respond better to me cos i can assure you if you can be honest and stay caring like you promise you will never had any problem with my family,You will never regret working with my family..You have nothing to worry about you will be treated like one of the family and you
will have 5 days to work in a week and 2 days as your off day that is Saturdays and Sundays. You will have the opportunity to do what ever you want to for your own good on weekends ,all i need is just for my kid to be treated well and well cared for Lucas.Hope to hear from you soonest.
Best regard
Angela Lewis

the 3rd mail:

Hello
How are you doing ?thanks for ur quick reply,I want u to start as soon as u are ready and when ur document are ready as well and i want u to stay with my family as long as u want,I want u to know that u are totally welcome to my family and i want u to know that the job is yours already cos i really like all about u,I told lucas all about u and he is really happy and in hurry to me you, he is even asking me of when u will be here and i told him soon.Thank God that i can Found someone that i think may be a good Match for Lucas that is why i chose u,Kindly get back to me as soon as you hear from you the agency ,and also to alert you again that i will help you to pay half of the fee that they will ask you to pay just to show you how serious i need you here.Lucas say hi,Hope to read from you soon.i will be waiting to chat with u tonight i just added u to my yahoo list...

Angela


If this is all Scam I hope somebody in UK Government can catch or make a law for all scammers.

I just hope that they will not use our picture in Scamming others..
Goodluck to us who seeking an Aupair job.
Please do something about this..

SincereLy,

You are correct in being suspicious. Your were definitely corresponding with a scammer. There is no job, only a scammer trying to take your money.

Unfortunately, these scammers are sitting in Africa, beyond the reach of our local law enforcement, and their countries' legal systems are often corrupt and/or very lax on punishing this type of crime. Right now your best defense against these scammers is knowledge, and that is what we strive to provide here. If you want to help, posting new scams here as you receive them will help others to avoid being scammed.

In the meantime, feel free to stop by and check any time you are uncertain as to whether something is real or a scam, and we are happy to help.

I received this, only this morning. When i called the number at the bottom of the offer letter it was answered by a Nigerian male, claiming to be Magu Wahels. His english is very poor considering he's supposed to be American. I have also received a 2nd email as i write this, asking for information, and that the cost of my air fare will be paid for. I will try and get them to send me a contract letter so that i can post it here also. Hope this helps. Take care.

The amil addresses he used were, [email protected], and [email protected].

Oceanbridge Recruitment do not exist. I checked on google. He retrieved my details from an agency website i registered with in Kuwait.

Dear Security Personnel,

We are an American family working and living in London United Kingdom. My name is Magu Wahels.


I have a wife and a son. My wife’s Licen and my son’s Joseph who is Four years old I work with Ocean Bridge Group UK a reputable Shipping company in the United Kingdom as the regional manager.

We have received your contact details from http://www.naukrigulf.com
My wife works with Qatar Airways, because of the nature of our Jobs, We find little or no time to be at home for Joe and his nanny, therefore I am contacting you today for us to discuss the possibility of hiring you as our personal Security Personnel
You will be with them always and give them all the attention desired, take him to school with the driver and come back after school over to bring him home with the driver too.. We have agreed to pay you 920 Great British Pounds per week for this service. You will need to be in this service for a minimum period of 12 months. You will have accommodation with us as well as a car if you can drive.

If you wish to take up this position please write me back or call me on my direct Numbers +447024028951/+44 7960554113. Let us discuss further. I will need you to start as soon as possible.


Your traveling effects will be arranged as a matter of urgency.


Sincerely
Magu Wahels

The next email i received was this one,

Dear Security Personnel,



We are so glad to read from you again knowing that you want to come and be part of our family as our security personnel. I will like you to send your complete personal information;



1. Full name: ...............................................

2. Country of Nationality: .............................

3. Current Resident Country:.........................

4. Contact Address: .....................................

5. Telephone/Fax no: ...................................

6. Marital Status: .........................................

7. Sex: ........................................................

8. Age:.........................................................







I shall go to my lawyer to prepare the contract which I will send to you via email for your review and acceptance.





I will take care of your flight ticket, visa fees and really do not mind your coming with your spouse or blood relation.



Warm Regards,

Magu Wahels

For The Family

I hope all these details help you guys. This scumbag needs to go to prison.

Quotes added for clarity - Michelle

Welcome, chrismc & thanks for your posting.

You realise that your call to him was actually redirected to his phone in West Africa, as all +4470xxxx numbers are 'redirect to anywhere' & not a UK number. That is why his English sounded very poor.

This scumbag needs to go to prison.

I believe you will find that many agree with you - if only we could make that happen!

Nobody would pay so much for a Nanny. That's really suspicious.

I have received the same e-mail that a lot of you have also received. As sooon as i read i just thought these people were just being awefully generous but then I decided to search for the given phone number on google and it led me to these posts. This is the 2nd au pair e-mail I have received. I think the first one was a scam as well. The second one that i received reads as follows

Hello Au Pair/Nanny,


I hope my mail meets you in good state of health. I am Mark Lennox, 41 years of age from United States. I am a Consultant Contractor and I reside at #162 Macarthur blv. Hauppague, NY, 11788, USA. As part of the information you may require, I have a 4 years old wonderful and interesting to be with twins namely Chris and Sheani. Due to the nature of my work and the unexpected transfer of my wife to Portugal, I hardly have time for my lovely Kids which prompted an idea of seeking an Au Pair/Nanny. After scrolling through your profile on www.aupair-options.com, both myself and my Wife consider you worthy of the job vacancy in my Home.



Your duties includes taking the kids to school/bringing them back home, play with them, go to Museums, Playground, Cinema Hall, prepare/fix their meals and snacks. You will have your Private Room which consist of Air-Conditional, Television, 12 hours Internet Access and a Telephone to keep you in touch with your friends, families and maybe relatives as often as you may desire, a Bathroom and Toilet. You will have Saturdays and Sundays as your off days, so to enable you have enough time for yourself otherwise, you will be paid for extra services. As for your salary, I will be willing to pay you 2,000 Dollars for every 4 weeks and a pocket fee of 500 Dollars weekly which I suppose should be enough for your primary needs. Regards my family pictures, I will send some upon request.


With all due respect, I will be hoping to hear from you as soon as possible if interested at the said position. Bye for now and may the gentle breeze of all moment blow cool memory into your brain, Amen!


Warmest regards,
Mark Lennox & Family.
Email: [email protected]
Phone Number: +1 315 238 5008

The first au pair message that i replied to was for a job in the UK. When i got the e-mail i had a weird feeling in my gut that it was a bad idea but i ignored that feeling and went for the feeling of excitement. I was naive and went along with this person's little scam (unknowingly of course).

She contacted me and told me who I should contact to get my visas processed as they have processed her previous visas (they are situated in the UK and I am in South Africa). The fee for the processing of visas was 1000pounds which I thought was ridiculous and when I told her that I would prefer to have my visas processed in SA where the costs would be so much lower. She got all uptight and said that she wants to do things her way. This should've been the first warning sign for me but then she offered to pay 800 of the 1000pounds and then i thought "hey if she is willing to pay that much she can't be a scammer" this must be kinda legit. Paid the 200pounds did everything, filled out the paperwork for visas etc etc.

And then i got an e-mail saying i needed to make another payment of 1500 for courier, flight allowance and 2 other things. This time around she offered to pay 1000pounds of the payment and i was left to pay the balance.

With that being paid i was contacted by the courier company who said they would be sending out my documents and they should read me within 5 days. Within 2 days i got a message from them telling me that my documents have been seized in Nigeria and I have to pay a customs fee of 500 US Dollars to have my documents released. This is when i thought to myself that this cannot be right and it can't be happening. So I decided to go back to her original e-mail that she sent me and i searched the number in google and It brought be to a Scamwarners page with the same e-mail, just different names and address. I felt like such an idiot. Anyway, I was feeling brave because there was no way she could do anything to me since she was miles away from me so I sent her the link of the place on scamwarners that i found 'her' e-mail. She seemed extremely calm about the whole thing and just said that "she doesn't know how her information but incorrect address got onto the website" so I told her that I think I do know how it got there.

She kept bothering me about paying this fee of 500 dollars and i started ignoring her coz at this point I was pretty sure it was a scam but then I kept thinking that maybe it’s not a scam and maybe she’s going to Sue me or something. There are things about our conversations that make sense and then there are things that don’t.

I later found out about the number she had given me. The contact number she had given me was one of those numbers that appear to be in the UK but are transferred to Africa, usually Nigeria.

She even phoned me once but her accent wasn’t very British which sent alarm bells off in my head. But then she sent me pictures of her and her family and I thought that she was legit. So when I have doubts about it something happens to make me question my doubts and then I go back to having doubts and then I don’t have doubts anymore. It’s all very confusing.

This is the e-mail that she sent me:

Good day,
I understand that you seek vacancy for Au-pair/nanny, I am sorry to contact you in this manner cos time and work won't permit me do so in an appropriate way. My name is Evelyn Fierce, 37 years with 2 kids ,Ben and Sally (2, &4)years

I work as Secretary in Burnade plc and My Husband is a Sailor he works with Welland Yacht here peterborough in the UK (England).I need someone who would look after my kids at home when I am at work.This is because my younger sister has gained admission in Cambridge University here UK and has resumed school. I need someone to take over from her at my absence.
I need a fun loving, reliable, friendly, experienced person and also can nurture my kids with care. For someone with experience and good qualities, I will set up good offer for you to take care of my Two kids for me very well.I want you to know that Kids are Understanding and Loving and also Playful i don't know how you will handle them but i
am sure you will love to work with them..

And i believe that you can take care of my kids for me and also i am ready to give weekly allowance of 50 Pounds and a Monthly Salary Of 2200 Pounds you can tell me how much you think it will be OK for you and my kids when i am not around.

Please email this inquiry
Your CV:
just a breakdown of who you are:
your pictures:
what your interests :
why you want to work with children:
Your Full Name :
Nationality:
Civil Status:

Kind regards,
Mrs Evelyn Fierce and Family

This My Contact Address
189 Gurnard Leys,
North Bretton,
Peterborough
PE3 8SA
+447024096615

Welcome to ScamWarners YSSR, though I'm sorry that it was losing money to a scammer that brought you here.

Thank you for your explanation of how the scam proceeded, which will be so helpful for other people, alerting them to the things to watch out for. As you discovered, as soon as you pay one invented fee, another fee is invented. The scammer/s (the courier company, of course, is also fake, and the emails from them will be written by the same scammer, or one of his associates) will usually continue to demand more and more fees until you refuse to pay any more.

You are absolutely correct about the telephone number: +44 70 numbers are not normal UK numbers, but are redirect numbers, redirecting all calls to the scammer's own phone, wherever in the world they are really located.

It is definitely a scam.