We have all received these and generally trash them but after receiving my tearful email from the ex-wife of the former Nigerian President pleading for my help to help get her $US42,000,000 away from the clutches of the current evil administration ... tempting I did a little digging and found an interesting article purporting to speak with one of the Nigerian spammer/scammers, albeit an ex one,

To quote sections ...

....."sources close to some of the so-called Nigerian e-mail scam's perpetrators insist that those overwrought messages fuel a thriving industry, employing thousands of people around the world who successfully manage to extract money from a multitude of Internet pen pals."

..."According to the FBI's 2001 Internet Fraud Report (PDF), about 2,600 people in the United States reported problems last year with the 419 scam, and of that number, 16 claimed financial losses totaling $345,000." ....

..."According to State Department figures (PDF), 25 murders or disappearances of Americans abroad have been directly linked to 419 fraud." ....

serious business indeed.
Full article here for those who wish to read it.

http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,53818,00.html