I have the best friends

An email received today:

Dear good friend,

Good day, how are you today? I am writing to inform you that I have
paid the fee for your Cheque Draft. And I went to the bank to confirm
if the Cheque has expired or getting near to expire and Mr.Ahmed Zafa
the Director of Financial Trust Bank told me that before the cheque
will get to your hand that it will expire. So I told him to cash the $1,500,000.00 USD UNITED STATES DOLLARS to
cash payment to avoid loosing this Funds. However, all the necessary
arrangement of delivering the $1,500,000.00 USD UNITED STATES DOLLARS
in cash was made with GLOBAL TRUST COURIER COMPANY here in Cotonou
Benin Republic,

It is so nice that my friend managed to cash a check payable to me before it expired.
As I was typing this blog post I received a 2nd email it contained above text plus:

Mr.Ahmed Zafa the Director of Financial Trust Bank Cotonou has to
package the sum of $1,500,000.00 USD in cash for me. Then he also
agreed to help me to register the Consignment with GLOBAL TRUST
COURIER COMPANY. Infact I thank God very much for all the movement I
made, every thing goes normally. As for our agreement with the Global Trust Courier Company they
promised that your consignment will leave this Country on Monday next
week, But the Director of the GLOBAL TRUST COURIER COMPANY said that
they need your contacts information’s to able them meet up with you
immediately the Diplomat Agent arrived to your Country. Please write a
letter of application to the given address below.

ATTN: Mr.Terry Cool
TEl: 00229 98540624
EMAIL :( removed)
Please, Send them your contacts information to able them locate you
immediately they arrived in your country withYour BOX .This is what they need from you.

1. YOUR FULL NAME
2. YOUR HOME ADDRESS.
3. YOUR CURRENT HOME TELEPHONE NUMBER.
4. YOUR CURRENT OFFICE TELEPHONE.
5. A COPY OF YOUR PICTURE

Please make sure you send this needed information to theDirector General of Global Trust Courier Company Mr.Terry Cool with
the address given to you Note. The Global Trust courier company doesn’t know the contents of
the Box. I registered it as a BOX of an Africa cloth. They don't know
it contents money. This is to avoid them delaying with the BOX. Don’t
let them know that is money that is in that Box, Again do let them to
find out the box contain cash for i simply register it as an African
Cloth ok.

I am waiting for your urgent response.

You can even call theDirector of Global Trust Courier company with this line: 00229 98540624 ( email removed )
Thanks and Remain Blessed.

Alhaji Barka

This explains so much. After 1st email I was concerned that bank had cashed my check for someone else. (I like Fuel misplace $1.5M all the time). 2nd email clarified a lot of things as I can now get my money back.

Still I am left wondering.

1) Was sending 2 emails intentional or was this a bad cut and paste on 1st attempt?

2) How many people really fall for this each year?

3) Would Waffles break even if he responded to 100 of these emails?