Ballymoney man promised multi-million pound windfall

But that’s just what one Ballymoney man received this week - as well as another promising him a 19million windfall!

Too good to be true? It certainly is.

The recipient of the letters - who does not want to be named - contacted the Times to warn other people not to fall victim to such scams.

He said: “The first one I got was apparently from a guy whose father was a former president of an African country.

“He said his father had been thrown into prison but had 60million stashed away.

“All I had to do was send him my details to help him get the money out of the country and he’d give me 15%.

“It was pretty authentic looking and he had supplied contact details but unfortunately for him I didn’t come up the Bann in a bubble!”

Just days later, the clued-up local received another letter - this time promising him 17.5million.

It was said to have been sent by a member of a Chinese bank.

The letter read: “I assure you that this process is totally risk free.

“The other option is that the money will revert back to the state.

“Nobody is getting hurt, this is a lifetime opportunity for us.

“I hold the key to these funds, and as a Chinese national we see so much cash and funds being re-assigned daily.

“I would like us to keep communication for now strictly by the above telephone and fax numbers.”

The man did not contact the numbers on either letter, instead taking them into our offices.

“I just want people to be aware of these scams,” he said.

“I saw through them straight away but more vulnerable people may be caught out and end up handing over their personal details which could be disastrous.

“I would implore them to through such letters straight into the bin or get in touch with the police.”