(wife is at work, there’s only re-runs on . . . )
One could make a game of looking for certain buzz-words/phrases:
Christian, God, Jesus, Church - in order to demonstrate a religious (read: moral) background)
father, grandfather, uncle - demonstration that one is in line for the money
angola, nigeria, kenya, insert-banana republic-here
a large sum of money apparently variable and random - of which you will only receive a small (but substantial portion)
the requirement of a small sum of money - hundreds to thousands - for strictly legal reasons - an insignificant amount, next to the winnings, however.
words conveying a sense of urgency
legal terms and phrases - transaction, batch/certificate/reference numbers - alphanumeric,
diplomat, charge d’affairs, envoy, attache,
They will typically ask for personal communication info, but may provide a phone number.
I recommend making collect calls to this phone number. Either that, or provide a number that you will not be using for a while. Request a flight to their home city, or invite them to meet with you in your city. Not because you want to meet these animals, however because it would be fun to mess with them for a while. And who knows - you might get a free trip to Lagos out of it - i’d recommend getting off at Heathrow . . . see London . . . .