Rappaport, Hiltner & Crenshaw Ryan Wheeler, Treasurer CONGRATULATIONS! YOU ARE A GUARANTEED AWARD RECIPIENT OF $3,900,000.00. SEND $20 Babylon, NY or Tampa, FL New York & Florida

Received mail from (address on envelope) Rappaport, Hiltner & Crenshaw, PMB 375, 26 Railroad Avenue, Babylon, New NY 11702.  Enclosed was letter signed by Ryan Wheeler, Treasurer, Cash Award Signator for the Payments Division.  Letter stated "On January 9, 2015 our offices identified by computer readout that you ..(my name).. holder of sequence number 10019608136.  You Have Definitely Won a Cash Prize.  Congratulations! ***$3,900,000.00  Three Million Nine Hundred Thousand Dollars*** stands to be paid and you're holding the win opportunity documents in your hands right now."   ... send us the document with your one-time processing fee of $20 in the envelope herewith.  Once in hand, our offices will will process your claim and rush to you your check and report particulars by return post."   Also enclosed was a very official looking "Guaranteed Win Certificate" picturing a check with the amount of %3,900,000,00, that I was to sign and return by 1/23/15 along with a "$20 processing fee" in an envelope addressed to: Processing Department, 26 Railroad Avenue, PMB 375, Babylon, NY 11702.   The main envelope that contains these papers has postage shown as  "Presorted, First Class Mail, Postage Paid, Tampa, FL, Permit No. 3311. 

I googled Babylon, NY site and contacted their Administration Office.  They have an onsite contact form which I completed, asking for verification of business titled "Rappaport, Hiltner & Crenshaw" as well as the address, 26 Railroad Avenue.  Reply received from Babylon, NY Administration Office is that 26 Railroad Avenue is a UPS Store where they rent out mailboxes. They did not know who rented PMB 375 and had no further information.

I googled United States Post Office and completed form to report mail fraud, which was acknowledged after I submitted it. It is sad and unfortunate that people are taken in by these legitimate-looking fake "certificates."  Any time they ask for money to "process" your "guaranteed cash prize" - and even if they call on the phone and ask that money be sent by Western Union - it is a scam.   Once you get scammed, you learn not to fall for these schemes.   I was scammed $100 by a caller who claimed to be calling from Microsoft and they found over 4000 errors on my computer.  He even took over my computer screen and showed me a fake report, using scare tactics to get me to pay $100 for one year service, then asked if I have enough money in my checking account to send $100 by Western Union.  I believed him when he said he was calling from Microsoft.   He then connected me online with Western Union and had me fill out a form online to deduct $100 from my bank account.   He even put an icon on my screen to use this so-called "service."   When it didn't work I contacted Microsoft and was told that Microsoft does not receive reports like this, that they do not call customers, and their services are free.

Beware of scammers.   Question everything.  Verify.