Whre can I get some of this special paper. Sounds like a great idea. I already have a lot of credit card debt and this will definetly help me out. I recently purchased some ocean front property in Nevada and will sell that for a great profit after the holidays. Keep the great ideas coming ABC

Why do you not put more effort on how US oil companies (Exxon Mobil& Chevron) are degrading the Niger Delta environment, in Nigeria. While you were in Nigeria you should have visited the Niger Delta and seen the BIGGER SCAM. This report should have been more objective.

It is the greed of people like Dr Sloan who enrich these scammers. We should start questioning the character and morals of the people who get sucked in by these 419 scams because that is what they prey on.

Dr Sloan you are a person who has the means and knowledge to make money yet you allow your greed to overule your reason. 419ers will always be around because greedy people will always be around.

Tim Sloan is also a crook in this matter so lets not forget about that. Any person with half a brain would know that accepting blackened money shipped out of a third world country in exchange for a huge profit is a scam. Only his greed put him in this situation and I am glad to see he lost some money. Everyone I know gets these stupid scam letters from around the world and yet not one of my friends has ever sent them a dime. Why? Because we are the average working man who thinks before they act. The people who fall for these scams are the really stupid or like DR Sloan, people who already have too much money and are obsessed with finding more.

Come on.........how DUMB do you have to be...or how MONEY HUNGRY do you have to be to fall for such scams???
Almost think these people deserve to lose money just for being so dam dumb!~!!

I saw this special, the stupidity of the people who get scammed is mind boggling. How can this guy be a doctor yet so dumb to be bilked out of $350,000 and given black sheets of construction paper?

I don't understand how people can be this dumb I really don't.

If you ask me this guy deserves it for being so greedy that he simply threw common sense out the door.

Dr Sloan may or may not be a good doctor. Only his patients know. I DO know that he is a fool, and a fool and his money soon part ways. In this case it went to Nigerian 419 scammers. I too have recieved these "offers". I set up a phony yahoo account and identity and played with a few groups of these idiots until i cajoled them into sending me a photo with them in it posing with a sign that said "chump" asked them to fax and mail things to random companies in India...generally had some fun with them. I sent one guy a penny then told the scammer he had been scammed...then closed the email account. Be careful but have fun with them if you have time.Just dont be a chump and send 340k to anybody. Greed sent this doctor over the edge.

We have just recently been scammed out of $11,000.00 by a "company" in nigeria. It put a cabash on our christmas spending ... there will not be any Christmas spending. I would like to report it somewhere but I don't know where. Anyone got any ideas for me? Thank you ~ Candi

Those people are pretty brazen. There is a website at where some people make an online sport of "baiting" these scammers and get them to do some really stupid things in an effort to get money.

I would like to see these Nigerian Scammers run for congress for several reasons.
1. You always receive nice emails from them.
2. They are consistently coming up with Great money making ideas.
3. They are more honest than my current congressman.
4. They do a lot better job at spending the money I send them than my congressman does.

Anyone who loses $340,000 from a Nigerian scam these days is beyond help.

I'm sure the good doctor will find a way to make up for the loss.

How can anyone as erudite as Dr. Sloan get caught in a scam I can only describe as so obvious it borders on the ludicrous. Dr. Sloan gets no pity from me. GREED is one of the seven deadly sins for a reason. As for "Mr. Ebi," he's only taking advantage of the old adage, "A fool and his money are soon parted."

These leaches will contact you through IM and even through myspace. I've been contacted more times that I can count. My money is my money, of which I have very little and have worked my butt off for. As one of the paupers in American society, I am well aware that there is no such thng as a getting rich quick! I am dumbfounded as to how anyone could possibly be so stupid. Sure as hell am glad the I have a healthy heart....would hate for Dr. Sloan to be my surgeon!! He may be book smart but needs to spend some time on the street with the little folk!

This Dr. Timothy Sloan guy sounds like an idiot. How do you get to a point in life, where you've earned the title Doctor, and you're too stupid to realize sending someone 300+ thousand dollars in Africa is a poor investment? As far as I'm concerned he deserves to be out his money because he's gullible. There are laws on the books in the USA against theft by swindle, but the US can't govern Africa. Cudos to the guy who got the cash in the end. Shame on the idiot who lost his money. Tough lesson learned.

Thank you very much for exposing this scam/fraud (419)to many people, so that they won't fall to this people. I'm a Nigerian living in Nem Mexico, and im a vitim of fraud too.

These scams have been going on for a very long time. There exists a small group of people who "play along" with these scammers and bait them to see where it goes. Some of them are quite funny but don't be fooled. There exists the possibilty that these Nigerians could harm you so make sure you know what you are doing if you decide to tug on the line and lead these criminal along for fun.

I do not understand how people can believe someone they do not know, let alone from another (third world) country wants to give them millions of dollars. I can feel no sympathy for greedy people who are educated and not "desperate" financially who are trying to procure money illegally. I'm glad he got duped and he needs to see a doctor himself-a psychiatrist!

While I am not defending the scam artist, I blame the doctor as well. How does someone promise him black money or whatever and he pays $340,000 for it? Surely our resident doctor knew that the money would be counterfiet? Even if it wasn't counterfiet money, surely he knew such a transation would be illegal. And if the money was all it was cracked up to be and legal did he ever consider why would the person selling it need to sell it, surely he would want to keep it for himself? I have to say that it is nitwits like him that encourage fraud especially those kinds of cyber fraud. No wonder he lost so much money. Obviously for him money grows on trees because if it didnt, he would not be so stupid. I think he is as guilty as the scam artist. I have an ammulet that brings good luck that has been in my family for 500 years. It brings the wearer unpresidented luck. It is his for a measly sum of $250,000!!!!

I think the documentary was unfair and it depicted a Great Nation as Nigeria so poorly. Yes we as Nigerians are aware of some of crimes that plague our country ,yet there are many many more Nigerians out here who earn good and meaningful living through hardwork. Now, some people use the word 'Fraudster" has been synonymous to a "Nigerian".How about the greedy Americans who fall for it? I am a proud strong Nigerian and my country deserves better publicity of The US of A.

This is hillarious. THis is how you foreign media cause conflicts. Get your facts right before writing about events in places you hardly know. I would like the managment of ABC to note that a whole lot of Nigerians even in the united states wont take kindly to our beloved Fatherland insulted.

I think I am married to a Nigerian email Scammer!!!!!!
I keep giving my wife money, she promises a big return and never delivers on anything. Who do I contact to turn her in? The FBI? National Organization for Women? My mother in Law? please, help.

The same thoughts ran through my mind as many of the posters: how could such a book smart man fall for such an obvious scam?

But let's not be too hard on Dr. Sloan because his greed is not a crime. The real criminals are the scammers. He has already paid for his greed. Let's focus on the people who are the con artists.

It is a dangerous thing to begin to judge people. He may have acted foolishly, but who hasn't been greedy or foolish at one point in time or another?

Why did ABC allow the scammers featured on the US segment of the program just walk away? Why didn't you arrange with the police to have these people apprehended? What is the point of exposing these people and letting them run free IN THIS COUNTRY?

When you went to Nigeria to film that segment, you worked with the local enforcement people to have them arrested at the internet cafe. In our own country you just let them get away to try again. So, media exposure did not impede them.

As for Dr Sloan, his stupidity is beyond belief. Reading his emails to the scammer shows his lack of basic intelligence. I pity anyone who has him for their doctor. I feel sorry for him because he must be delusional to get suckered in this scam for $350K. Didn't he pick up on this as a scam earlier? How can he even converse with someone who writes like that scammer and think he is dealing with a legitimate concern?

419 scams have been around for years, so ABC, you did not expose anything new, so don't make this out to be some great revelation. Anyone with common sense would recognize and ignore these scam emails. I'm beginnign tothink that people should require a permit and certification to use the internet. The people you interviewed who were scammed are just unbelievable.

The greedy doctor got what he deserved.
No sympathy for a fool who at least must
have known that his imagined riches would
have been criminal.

How he earned an M.D. is another question.
Our faith in the medical profession sinks
yet lower.

What Medical School/College did this guy go to? Was it in Nigeria?
Give me a break.

I think it is highly pathetic that ABC spends time on such a report. They must have nothing better to do with their time. Companies like Enron fraudulently fooled many shareholders, while the managment team embezzled all thier money. This type of stereotype and name calling is uncalled for. Majority of Nigerians are hardworking people who are putting in numerous hours to fend for themselves and their families. This story should highlight the ethical issues of Americans and the dishonesty embedded in their culture. If they weren't greedy, they would never have been a victim of fraud. Shame on ABC and shame on the American society itself

I feel 20/20 should not even have bothered to report how stupid the doctor is. If some really old people or people with very less means have been scamed, and if 20/20 made a report to warn people, then it is good. But, in this case, it is so very obvious that the doctor is a fool. This should go under some 'Stupid News' headlines.

Let me see if I get this straight, you are sent an e-mail saying that for just a few thousand, you can make a million dollars. A million dollars of money from a foreign country, which is having ongoing problems with social deficiencies in that country (corruption, lack of food, schooling, adequate water and housing)and you are more than willing to take money. Shock of all shocks, these people turn out to be scam artists. They have stolen from you the money you were going to use to steal from others (of course you would have put it on your taxes and donate a little) and now you want us to feel bad for you? Brian Ross, I thought you were smarter than this. There had to be something else going on in the world the week this story came out. Nigerians, Liberians, Texans it doesn't matter that the scam is being pulled. What matters is the greed and unbelievable sense of entitlement of the people who were scammed. You deserve to loose every penny of that money, just as the scammer deserves every moment of bad karma that will come with his/her deeds. Next time you want to take candy from babies because you think they won't care, you'll hopefully think twice. Though I very much doubt it.

To the woman who lost $11,000, you should tell yourself and then hope yourself doesn't find you as distasteful as we all should....

why do you have to show the wrongs in a country and not the good things they can do, I am very sure your great nation has its faults, but showing some crap like that is very offensive, you have no right, you are only making your people more ignorant, because the mor they see these things, the less they think of the outside world, Nigeria is a great nation, and we have our good sides, so keep ur crap to yourselves, and we will keep ours to ourselves, i would love to curse you out, but we are civilized adults, and we should learn to show each othr some form of respect.. I turn on your news everyday, and all I see and hear is bad news about America, people complaining, trust me if Nigerians saw these things, they would not be this desperate for your money, we all want money, and we want it fast, that is why ignorant Americans also fall for these traps, we are all ignorant and selfish, and it will get us nowhere, so keep your self to your self and we will keep ours.

First of all, Brian Ross made some disparaging and inaccurate comments. But this will not be the first time that ABC produced information filled with fallacy. I.E. (George Bush Documentary,Movie about events leading to 911).
1> Its impossible to live on $1 a week when a loaf of bread can cost between $2 to $4 dollars.
2> "..a crime ridden, disgrace of a city.." exist in the U.S. too. I.E. washington,D.C,

So please,(ABC) do more researches before producing another fallacy filled investigation.

Mr Ross, I think u owe ABC news media a lot of money for wasted air fare and Hotel accomodations. I wonder how long you've been in the media. I need to read ur CV for more info. Have u ever won an award?? Hmm....U need to learn a thing or two from your counterparts over at the peacock network, cos what u did on friday shld be called 'un-intelligent-reporting'. I don't see any emmy trophys coming from this. Maybe u need to retire!

I have a friend who almost fell for some poor girl's sob story. The "girl" begged for his help and started suggesting money would help her out. "She" even went so far as to book a flight and emailed him all the info. I contacted the airline on his behalf and reported the whole thing to security. I also contacted the personals service he met "her" through and reported it. Now, we laugh about it. Thank goodness he doubted the whole thing and sought advice. It could have been costly.

Solution - disable the internet in Third World Countries that don't crack down on spammers. Like we do North Korea, Iran .........

first and foremost it was very wrong for that news guy to say that nigerians average income is one dollar a week..this is so not true because some nigerians here or even in nigeria feeds much more better that him,and i really cant understand why the americans that claim to beone of the richest and knowing that too much smart people in should fall for those tricks,c'mon now...what in the hell is black money,even a mad man can't fall for it...and the white *mugus* be falling for it....it's so funny..this shit has been going on for a long time now and it's just being brought to public now...wow!!!..am still amazed that a heart surgeon is a fool at his age,please i would like to know the kind of surgery he really does coz mehn i can't help to say that he is a dumb fool..it's not like people don't do 419 to eachother,even in america here most people dupe eachother,......it's life for you...let the wise be wise and the fool learn..

Let those who come to equity come with clean hands. Dr. Sloan and the people scamming him are birds of the same feather. They are all trying to reap where they did not sow. The one who steals and the one who receives the stolen item are both rogues.

If the deal had gone well and Dr. Sloan made his cool money or the millions the scammers promised him, he would not breath a word of it to anyone. Now that he has been burnt, he wants the world to see him as a victim.

I have no symptathy for him for his greed and stupidity.

ABC should stop portraying Dr. Sloan and his cohorts as victims.
Instead take your cameras and to back to Delta Regions of Nigeria where the large chunk of the oil you use in driving your cars comes from and see what's going on there. Until you do that, I see you as playing double-standard.

Does anyone have Dr. Sloans email address. I can sell him that paint remover for half price. For $170,000 he get that paint of, no problem guarranteed, and that's no scam.

I've already made the trip to the hardware store and all I need to do is send him my paypal account number. I'll even pay for shipping myself as a bonus!

What a looser.

i simply object to the way the abc has conducted itself in this matter...firsty they make all nigerians look like scammers wen thats not how it really is...secondly the bit about the music celebrating it is just bullshit(excuse my language) because that song was made for a movie........also i am sorry to say but americans are the greatest mugus of all time.........how do u believe someone u never met tellin you you have an inheritance somewhere.......how dumb!!!!!

i'll be back to enlighten all the other ignorant americans out there...

Once a fool- always a fool... Come on people! Why would anyone send someone overseas a large sum of money without some face-to-face contact as well as written documentation explaining the proposed deal? I remember when I first received one of these emails... I emailed the person back that I was protected legally and that if the proposal was a scam, I'd contact the necessary authorities... needless to say, I never received a reply! These scam artists don't want to wait in line to enter hell... they want 1st class, shuttle express service!

All I have to say is a fool and his money are soon parted. C'mon! This is a doctor! You would expect he is smart enough to spot something like this coming!

Anyone stupid enough to fall into a Nigerian scam deserves to lose their money. If you receive an email, in poor English grammar and spelling, claiming that you are involved with some millions from Africa, and you believe it, then you are too dumb to be able to hold onto your cash. Bravo, ABC.

I have no sympathy for Dr. Sloan, even if they weren't scamming him Dr. Sloan had to have know it was illegal smuggle blackened money from another country. That greedy Doc got what he deserved

Yeah, Nigerians are hard working people. Working hard at ripping people off.

Come on people... it's NIGERIA! How in the world can you possibly believe that there's ANYTHING there that can make you rich. Unbelievable!

The real scammers are the Colonialists who stole from Africa, and the oil companies and Airlines who are stealing from Nigeria. ABC, get a grip! Why don't you do a documentary about the above. Bad, Bad journalism!

Keep up the good work of exposing these criminals. The only people who are offended by this report are con artist.

I find it interesting that there are a couple of posts from Mike Jones wanting ABC to investigate "Big Businesses" and not foreigners that rip off people in the US. Shouldn't we pursue ANY/ALL fraud artists?? Sure, the corporations that defraud people, or ravage the countries they are in, should be investigated. But that is not what this piece is about. It is about a specific ONGOING scam that most people are aware of...but not all!!

Older people are usually the ones to fall for this. They are from a different era. More trusting, less aware of the fraud/scasmming going on out there. Heck...the LA Times subscription department scammed my 80+ year old grandparents for multiple subscriptions when their eyesight wouldn't allow them to read.

This article is about foreigner scammers though.....we should all be reminded/be made aware of their potential.

First off, I think ABC owes Nigeria and its people an apology. Secondly, we know we have problems in our country, but before reporting what you think is news, get your facts straight. The thing with the music video was merely a joke. If that reporter had done his research he would have found out the guy singing is a comdeian. How woulod anybody in their right mind celebrate such an act!! Also calling Lagos a "crime ridden city" is just plain disrespectful. Why didn't he focus on what scams America is doing in Nigeria. Big oil companies like Chevron and Shell are taking up area's in the Niger Delta building all these oil industries, polluting the water that the poor people live on.. WHY DIDN"T HE REPORT ON THAT! And then you want to call Nigerian's out on being scammers. All I can say is Nigerian's are one of the most hardworking people. If the greedy Americans had never accepted such an act the issue would have been dead a long time ago. My point: the blame lies with the money hungry americans who want money the did not work for!

Funny, i just saw the special the other day on t.v. and i opened up my hotmail today and received one of those letters.. telling me they have 12.5 million from some people that died in a plane crash 6 years ago...

These scams only succeed because of greed. Dr. Sloan and others need to ask themselves why a total stranger is willing to share with someone they've never met. This is just a version of the time-worn "I found this money on the street" flim-flam. He may be a doctor, but he's not smart.

I applaud ABC for yet again exposing these so-called 419 scam artists, and their apparently greedy and conniving victims, all looking to reap where they did not sow. Not equally exposed in the report is the rampant public corruption in Nigeria among its ruling political and bureucratic elites who have for too long plundered the national coffers, and nurtured a very fertile climate for fraud and thievery. In reality, however, the true 419 victims are the millions of honest and hard-working Nigerians at home and abroad who have been unfairly tainted and tarnished by the alarming misdeeds of a few of their countrymen. For as the old Nigerian adage attests, when one finger is coated with palm oil all fingers get soiled. In the final analysis, this apparently unquenchable selfish and self-seeking pursuit of ill-gotten wealth by the 419 scammers and their public service cohorts and enablers have continued, even in this much-heralded era of globalization and outsourcing, to deprive Nigeria of much-needed foreign investments, self-sustaining growth, and job creation.

It's impossible that EVERY person in Nigeria is a scammer. I abhor generalizations. Not EVERY American is greedy enough to fall for something like this. The scam my family survived was on a much smaller scale, but came from the same type of people. Reading those emails gave me horrible flashbacks. These scammers responded to an ad we placed trying to sell our car. They used that phone system deaf people use to contact us, then switched to email. As soon as I started getting the emails I had questions, but chalked most up to thinking they were hearing impaired. They wanted to send money orders to pay for the car and cost of shipping to CA, expecting us to cash them and wire payment to the shipping company so they would pick up the car. Of course they'd have racked up app $3000 and we'd have been left with $7500 in worthless money orders! They don't always play on greed folks!!! This was a legitimate ad that they tried to take advantage of. BEWARE of anything that seems odd PERIOD!!! They're not all from Nigeria!!

It's ammazing how you western media portray Africa. You have nothing good to say other than tragedy or scam. If Sloan had been successful no one would know about the scam. It is pay back for the greedy. The exploitation of the poor countries still continues in his book that's why he fell for the scam. Sometimes when you think others are foolish, you end up being the most stupid. ABC, spare us and spend the air time on better reporting. Brian Ross, if you problem with any Nigerian find another avenue to get back at him and do not paint the Nation with same brush.

Its unfortunate that people fall for these scams. I've received many of these letters and they are laughable to say the least. Not to mention poorly written. Everybody is just looking for a quick buck.
As usual the morons at ABC are quick to spin the story to put Nigeria in a negative light. Yes, scammers operate in Nigeria but they are not seen as folk heroes or celebrities. The so-called hit music video was a spoof, sung by a Nigerian comedian. People that fall for these scams should get their heads checked. Who sends their picture and bank information to a complete stranger in another country? I'm not even going to comment on the doctor. Sheesh.

To whomever reading this i'm willing to expose more of these people for I have more than 45 to 60 people awaiting for me to pay money some from 419 to new batch and some from our own allie in Britian. If you are reading this please have Mr.Ross contact me at my e-mail address quickly for I looking forward to a possible clearence for those who already lost thousand to these people.

Why is it that the only time a Nation makes the American headlines is when its has bad news stamped on its National flag.
We all agree that every country has its flaws, the Nigerian one being its very admirable skills at conning gullible stuck up westerners who think that the world revolves around them. We all tend to forget that those who agree to make fast millions are also an accomplice to this crime; in this case, it is swidinling some alledged family of their inheritance frm their alledgedly dead father.
Let us face the facts, whoever is a Nigerian would prefer to be a scamming Nigerian rather than a murdering American. Scamming is a crime and so is slander. Calling the city of a country a disgrace on national telvision is pathetic and that reporter should be ashamed or maybe that word has been replaced by "mugun" in his dictionary.
There is no form of genuine help, yet the best they can come up with is defamation & advertising the daftness of Americans on national tv, well good luck at it, this Nigerian is not backing down and so are millions of others.

Oh and for those who constantly mention "poorly written English", what can I say? Well I can vouch for the fact that your English is not as good as mine, let alone the scammers.

Am Loving this Long Live NIgeria

I blame Nigeria government for even cooperating with you. Your fore fathers went to Nigeria and exchange mirrors for pure Gold what will you call that and owns mines in Africa as if it belongs to them. Enron, FEMA and all the con credit card companies are ok to you. Also, for you to say we live on $1 per week shows how intelligent you are, Mr High School graduate.

Brian Ross' report reflects the knee jerk shallow approach western media treat serious issues. The entire premise of the story and the manner it was presented is really sad. How come the lady from Alabama was being presented as a victim when if there was any justice in the world-she should be defending herself of attempted money laundering charges. How come the unserious work of a small time Nigerian comediam gets to be presented as the sine qua non of public opinion in Nigeria. How come the one aerial view of Lagos was of the dirtiest part-to reflect that ingrained positioned Brian Boss has always had of places like Nigeria,i can think of many places in the US that are not far from that-skid row in LA etc. I dont think the one shot Brian would show of DC will be of the SE districts.
Fighting E-mail fraud is similar to the unwinnable wars against illicit drugs and identity fraud-you keep trying against all odds just to limit it. Contrary to what Brian Ross claimed Americans are not delibrately targeted,I am a US citizen of Nigerian origin and my 79 year old mother in a little village in Nigeria gets the same e-mails!! Suprised Brian-she does have e-mail contrary to the myopic cuisine small minded journalist like Brian feed the American people that good cannot be found in other places. The BBC stories on this same topic are always more incisive because they have local jounalist on ground who give it a rounded perspective.
Rather than buying special ipods to 'save' Africans from AIDS just click delete on your e-mail box to deny the scumbag in Nigeria who sits all day in from of a computer screen sending e-mails to greedy westerners who ignore all the typos in the letter and send a token hoping to scheme a very poor country of monies that should have been used to do fight the same AIDS.
I wonder what contribution Brian really made,the few guys the show exposed in the states,he allowed to walk away free.hmmnnn perhaps he hopes to get a follow-up when the guys ahve defrauded more gullible people.How irresponsible,i hope you wont point your fingers at Nigerians for that.

I'm glad so many people see that stupid story ABC ran for what it really was. The people who fell for the scam were greedy, and no one should justify that. Yes, people feel greedy urges, but if we act on them, then we are just as guilty as the scammers. Greed involves taking what is not yours, whether it is the scammers or the people being scammed who knowingly agreed to fraud.
In addition, the reason those Nigerians were not arrested was because Dr. Sloane would have had to be arrested too because he was knowingly involved in criminal activity.
That inaccurate story makes all Nigerians look bad when the majority are hard-working and honest. And whoever suggested that internet access not be allowed in Nigeria, that is a ridiculous suggestion. So no Nigerian should have access to the internet because there are idiots who commit fraud and idiots that fall for it? Brian Ross needs to be fired because he is NOT an investigative reporter. If he was, there would have been more truths in that story than lies. That song is a soundtrack to just one of the many movies frequently produced in Nigeria, and all our movies depict situations that go on there, whether good or bad. Furthermore, scams are not unique to Nigeria. They occur everywhere, and I resent Nigerians as a whole being pinpointed. Look at the all the fraud that goes on in here. He who lives in a glass house should not throw stones.

This report made me SICK TO MY STOMACH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot believe how 20/20 made my ppl look. Bedside the fact that they're scammers ALL OVER THE WORLD....20/20 had the NERVE to say "Nigerians live off a dollar a week" Where the hell are you all getting your facts from?? Then, you said "Lagos is a disgrace of a city" How dare you!!!!!! Everytime I even repeat those words, it nearly brings a tear to my eye!!!
I will never watch 20/20 the same again!!!!!!!

After reading through the ABC reporters reports about Nigeria scammers , am yet to find a meaning to it. I will like to take Brian Ross back to history, first where re you when Texaco, Mobil , Chevron and Shell connive with the late head of state (Abacha) to killed Ken Sarowiwa, all because he had threaten to stop their activities in the Niger Delta Region due to the Environmental degredation they have caused in the area that rendered most of the farmers in that area jobless. Secondly where re you when the present Government of Nigeria uncovered Million of Dollars taxes these aforemention companies have evaded over the years. There is more to these but l will like to stop here. l hope you will have to come Nigeria again and visit the Niger Delta Area, and do another version of your report title " HOW AMERICAN OIL COMPANIES HAVE FRAUD NIGERIA AND ITS PEOPLE TO ENRICHED AMERICA".
For the victim of scammers in US , l think the FBI have work to do , they should start arresting these victims for questioning on illegitimate business

The people of Nigeria deserve an apology. Brian Ross you are a stupid man.

Sometimes words fall so short of expressing what is felt, but I'll try...

I am blown away that a Heart Surgeon would fall for such a stupid scam!

Moreover, to the tune of $345,000?!?

WOW! I am sorry, but that's way beyond comprehension. Way, way beyond.

I was wondering why scammers, who I've received the same scam from probably hundreds of times, were so persistent. Now I know why, and I guess I'm more angry at the suckers for having such a loose grasp on reality as to make the scammers' work profitable. Much more profitable than I imagined.

WOW!

In case I did not make this clear in my comment, Brian Ross needs to issue an apology as well as clarification on the false or exaggerated parts of his "investigation."

Brian Ross, where did you get your journalism degree from? DO you even have one. Come to think of it, Where you scammed too? Cause I really think you are also a "mugun" you really doesn't know how to write a story. Lagos is a beautiful place, You showed a house and said that is what Nigerians consider as a Mansion. IF not for our useless leaders in Nigeria who have robbed us, you'll never refer to our city as a disgrace. There was a time when one dollar was equivelent to one Niara. Honestly you can't compare your ghetto to Nigeria ghetto. Why is that you didn't show the nice areas we have in Lagos and we do have many and very lovely Mansions in lagos and all around Nigeria. A friend of mine, who is an American, went home to Nigeria with me and honestly she couldn't believe how beautiful Nigeria is, that is because the US media never ever shows them that part. No wonder Americans think we live on trees in Africa.
ABC needs to Apologise to the Nigerian people. Oh I get it, it really gets you that Nigerians, black people, can out smart you, YOU MUST REALLY HATE THAT.
The Americans that are being scammed are just as bad as the scammers. GREED!!! A doctor, a US congressman. WOW! Nigerians are very smart, although Brian Ross failed to mention it, not all Nigerians are scammers. It's like saying Americans are murdurers. What do you hear on the news every time you turn your TV on? Murder right? yeah you got it, hope that wasn't to hard for you to figure out. If only you can always be this smart.
God bless you.

I am quite disturbed by your unfair and distorted reporting on the 419 scam problem in Nigeria. Your collaboration with the EFCC does not give you any more credibility. As a Nigerian, I am quite offended and disturbed by the racist tone of your summation of my country. Mr Brian Ross, if you were aware the role Lagos has played in your existence you wouldn't have the balls to dismiss it as "..a crime ridden, disgrace of a city.." That crime ridden, disgrace of a city has one of the biggest economies in Africa with investments in real estate, banking, raw materials, goods and services, automobiles, commercial products, etc. Lagos is the gateway to the oil that you proudly use to gas up your car. 419 Scamming is a two way process, it is not just fair to say that there is a victim and a victor. Both are victors because they both have intents to defraud a process, let us be fair in our assessments. Your report will have had more credibility if you never made generalizations, lambasted both parties as criminals, showcased also how the west plays us for the "Mogo" or "419", and how honest Nigerian citizens are making a living despite the supposed $1 a day living expense rating we have. Wake up Brian Ross, you call yourself a reporter. A reporter should never be biased or allow his emotions to decide his reporting, a good reporter must have his facts straight and present it clearly, a good reporter should be fair, and a good reporter must abide by some code of ethics, all of which you have failed miserably. God Bless you Mr Brian Ross, I really wish you the best in life. Next time you go to Nigeria, call me, I will give you a tour around Nigeria, especially in Lagos, it is not what you see that decides, it is what you know and experience. Nigeria is a great country, it might be corrupt just like any other country, but it also contains some of the honest, brightest, intelligent, hardworking, and visionary individuals you could ever find.

Brian Ross "investigative" piece of reporting on "Nigerian" scam artists is the most disgraceful piece i have ever been unfortunate to watch on 20/20. As is usual with the notoriously biased western media, nothing but a myopic slant on a rather unimportant event that is simply being blown out of proportion by "victims" who in actual fact are greedy criminals who should be facing trial for money laundering charges!
How can Brian Ross claim that "I go chop your dollar" is the anthem for scammers?
1. the song was made for a home video by a popular comedian!
2. The song did not become popular until dear old Brian Ross did his piece. I was in Lagos, Nigeria up until 2005 and i never heard the song. Thanks to Brian, i now have the video!!!
What of the scammers at enron? Has George Bush finished scamming the Iraqis?
Lagos is a "crime-ridden disgrace" of a city? Wow! If i was not mistaken i would have thought New Orleans was a part of Lagos!
I'm glad i grew up in Lagos, it made me smarter than idiots who think they can turn construction paper into money by washing it with chemicals.

I too am glad that there are still people in the world who see through this farce of a piece claiming to be "investigative". Mr. Ross, you and ABC should be ashamed of yourselves for this horribly pieced together, unbelievably biased and offensive piece. If ABC wants to run a story on scams, it must be done right, plain and simple. ABC must call a spade a spade and that means assigning equal responsibility for the crimes taking place, not fallaciously pitting one as victim and one as criminal. Moreover, the story must be told in its entirety, not some haphazard attempt to hastily throw together a piece condemning an entire nation because Ross as a reporter is too lazy to do an actual investigation.

I suspect Mr. Ross was simply too lazy to fully pursue a legitimate story. Instead, he succumbed to the temptation to play on stereotypes and tell outright lies laced with his own ethnocentric prejudice to tell the story that HE wanted to be told, not the story that NEEDED to be told.

And lest people think this is just an issue of Nigerians getting offended, it's a matter a principle and it effects EVERY country (primarily third world) that lack the resources to adequately catalyze a counter-dialogue to the slander that takes place in the media. These countries are sick and tired of being treated as monoliths of corruption, criminality and essentially everything that is wrong with the world and please believe, their voices will be heard loud and clear.

Mr. Ross, you have messed with the wrong group this time. Nigerians in the United States collectively have the highest income and levels of education of almost every other group in this country. It would be foolish of you or ABC to believe that they will get away with such shameful behavior.

Mr. Ross,

I thought you might also like to know that Nigerians in America, contrary to what you may believe, have the highest income and level of education of nearly every other group here, including white Americans. Surprised? Of course you would be. According to you, they all live off of $1 a day.

It would behoove you to do what's right - follow up your horrendous piece with a clarification that exposes all of the inaccuracies and outright wrongs in the initial report. This is imperative because your piece was just absolutely disgusting in it's lack of journalistic integrity. You of all people know that a journalist is only as good as his last story. That being the case, you should be tossed out into the street because your latest "investigative" piece was just garbage.

I got several of these emails, some of which still lodge in my email response box. I always response my telling them I'll send the FBI to follow up on them.

ABC news needs to get their facts straight... The former Inspector General of Police Chief Tafa Balogun was not convicted for taking bribes and kick backs from 419 kingpins. He was convicted on a totally different issue. Also the EFCC operative that was boasting that he arrested his former boss should be ashamed of himself too for going along with the wrong facts.

Nigeria is a great country with prospect for becoming greater. I dont think it is right to label all Nigerians as scammers and fraudsters just because of the actions of a minute amount of the general population engaging in the act.

After all Westerners invented fraud and scamming, but Africans perfected the act.

This is just some more propaganda about poor countries being "bad" and the white decent america being "good".

I was so disgusted by that program....I am sure that if we did an expose on AMERICAN fraud and scammers....a 5hr slot would be required. In fact! somebody should!...any takers?

And the people who send money to STRANGERS on the premise of getting MORE Money?...enough said.

Worse scams happen in nigeria ,these people(Nigerian scammers) learnt from the best you guys (Americans).

It's a wonder that anyone with more then a 6th grade education would be caught in such scams.

Ever heard of Darwinism? The feeble (of mind) are doomed to disappear in favor of people who actually THINK.

If you can loose 300K on such a scheme, you really dont deserve to complain about it; The good doctor should be shamed by his gullability. But his tolerance for appearing stupid is obviously surmounted by his desire to have his face on TV...

Should we really sympatize with wealthy people scammed because they wanted MORE money?

Greed is evil, supidity is no excuse.