"Locals in Kano (Nigeria) reckon if you leave your house, say during a holiday, you may return to find that someone has tried to sell your manor in your absence.
So, who on earth tries a stunt like that? The most common response I get is a shake of the head followed by: "419ers".
That's a nickname referring to Section 419 of the Nigerian Criminal Code regarding fraudulent practices. The name usually applies to characters behind the spam email phishing scams promising people lottery wins or money in return for an advanced payment.
Around Kano, 419er seems to generally apply to any petty criminal whether they're phishing or playing the dodgy property game - anything that's a nice little earner.
And 419 is a number some Nigerians think twice about. The manager of my hotel said a well known guest who recently stayed in room 419 asked for the number on the door to be covered up. Not good for his image apparently, particularly if he received guests"
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