Postal inspectors in the United States say that so far this year they have seized and destroyed two-million letters from Nigeria at Kennedy Airport in New York, in an operation against an international mail fraud scheme.
The inspectors say that American consumers are being defrauded out of one-hundred-million dollars a year by Nigerian fraudsters who send what are known asadvance-fee letters offering a business opportunity to earn millions of dollars.
The letters -- purportedly from Nigerian government officials -- offer a twenty-five percent commission to the recipient for helping to transfer up to thirty-eight million dollars from Nigeria to the United States.
The American officials said the postal authorities in Nigeria and Ghana were co-operating to break what they described as one of the longest-running fraud schemes.
Last week, the Nigerian government placed large advertisements in the British press warning about the fraud.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
Country profiles
Dam builders charged in bribery scandal
Burundi camps 'too dire' to help
Sudan power struggle denied
Animal airlift planned for Congo
Spy allegations bug South Africa
Senate leader's dismissal 'a good omen'
Tatchell calls for rights probe into Mugabe
Zimbabwe constitution: Just a bit of paper?
South African gays take centre stage
Nigeria's ruling party's convention
UN to return to Burundi
Bissau military hold fire
Nile basin agreement on water cooperation
Congo Brazzaville defends peace initiative
African Media Watch
Liberia names new army chief