ONYX

Another Nigerian Fraud

The Council of Better Business Bureaus and the American Kennel club issued a warning about fraudulent web sites, MySpace postings and newspaper ads asking people to help save puppies who are in trouble.

The sites and ads usually show adorable bulldog puppies that have become stuck somehow in Nigeria or other countries and are offered free to new owners. Sometimes its a purebred English bulldog - a very expensive breed that often sells for as much as $3,000 - at greatly discounted prices. Those who respond to the ads eventually are asked to send hundreds of dollars to cover expenses such as shipping, customs, taxes, inoculations and on and on - some people reported paying as much as $1,500. And no matter how much was paid, no one who has fallen for this ever got a puppy!

One woman answered an ad saying a family had moved from the US to Nigeria with the puppy, but the the dog was suffering because of the climate. All they wanted was $360 to cover shipping costs. Once that money was sent, the woman was asked for additional funds for customs' fees, and since she already had $360 invested, she paid that, too. Next was a cost for insurance - and so on. And there never was a puppy.

Once again, remember if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is!