St. Paul the Apostle Sudanese Mission
Established 2007
527 W. Pima St.
Phoenix, AZ 85003
Phone: (602) 944-7340
The Rev. Anderia Arok
Scam e-mails from Sudan target U.S. Episcopalians
Episcopal News Service - Numerous dioceses and individuals in the United States are being targeted in an e-mail scam using the names of clergy and bishops in the Episcopal Church of Sudan, often pleading for immediate financial help for a family member who is purported to be ill.
People in the dioceses of Chicago, Milwaukee, North Carolina, Southwestern Virginia, and Virginia, among others, have been receiving e-mails during the past few months, all sent under the names of legitimate individuals in Sudan. Some of the e-mails are "check-ins," asking the recipients why they haven't responded to earlier e-mails. Others claim that family members of the sender are ill, and ask that money be transferred to accounts immediately to pay for medicine or hospital stays.
"We don't know where these e-mails are coming from," said the Rev. Lauren R. Stanley, an Episcopal Church missionary who has served in Sudan. "They all come with the names of legitimate members of the clergy, sometimes from bishops, in Sudan, but they're all fake."
Stanley said that all of the e-mails come through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) called "graffiti.net," which is the first clue that the missives are fake. The second clue, she said, is that the return address is changed from known e-mail addresses of partners in Sudan.
Furthermore, she said, "the language is not quite right. The mode of address in the letter is not what is normally used in Sudan, and the grammar is different from what most Sudanis speak."
Several of the e-mails are alleged to have originated with the Rt. Rev. Daniel Deng Bul, bishop of the Diocese of Renk, claiming his wife is ill. However, Jackie Kraus, a board member of the American Friends of the Episcopal Church of Sudan (AFRECS), spoke with members of the bishop's family and discovered that the e-mail was a fake. AFRECS sent out a warning to its members late last year, but the e-mail scams continue.
Other e-mails use the names of Sudanese priests and bishops who have visited the United States. Recipients frequently, but not always, are Americans who have worked with Sudanese in the United States or have visited various areas of Sudan.
"We don't know how the senders got the e-mail addresses in the U.S.," Stanley said. "Some of the recipients are involved in supporting the Church in Sudan, but not all of them. However, we do know that every single e-mail has proved to be false."
Stanley said she is worried that some of these e-mails may contain viruses. "I've been warning people not to open these, and if they do, to immediately run a virus scan on their computers," she said.
Anyone who receives an e-mail allegedly from Sudan, with a return address that includes "graffiti.net," should contact the alleged sender in Sudan before sending any money, Stanley said. "Some of the e-mails ask for checks, which is another tip-off that these aren't legitimate requests. American checks can't be cashed in Sudan."
Officials in the Episcopal Church of Sudan are aware of the scam, but have not been able to identify who is behind it, or where the perpetrators are getting the information.
Sudanese bishop visits Arizona
The Rt. Rev. Alapayo Manyang Kuctiel (center) surrounded by Bishop Kirk S. Smith (clockwise, right), Daniel Lom, a member of St. Paul the Apostle Sudanese Mission, the Rev. Canon Timothy Dombek, the Rev. Canon Carmen Guerrero, and Peter Aguto, a member of St. Paul the Apostle Sudanese Mission, at the Episcopal Diocesan House on Jan. 3 before Bishop Kuctiel left for Kansas City. Greta Huls/Diocese of Arizona
PHOENIX - The Episcopal Diocese of Arizona was visited Jan. 3 by the Rt. Rev. Alpayo Manyang Kuctiel, the Bishop of Rumbek. Bishop Kuctiel is visiting the United States to check on the welfare of the Sudanese living here and to spread the word about the needs of his own diocese in southern Sudan.
Click here to see Bishop Kuctiel's unedited Powerpoint.
The Rumbek Diocese was created on June 25, 1976 out of the Diocese of Sudan. The diocesan headquarters is in the city of Rumbek in the middle of south Sudan. It was one of the first four Sudanese dioceses. Currently, the Diocese of Cueibet is to the west, Yirol is to the East, Mundri is to the southeast, Maridi is to the southwest, and Malakal is to the north.
Rumbek's first bishop was the Most Rev.Benjamin Wani, and the second was Gabriel Roric. Bishop Kuctiel is the third and current bishop. The Diocese was without a bishop for 18 years because of the war.
According to Bishop Kuctiel, as a result of war the illiteracy level is over 95% among the women and 80% among men. Out of 178 pastors serving a population of 250,000 Christians in 273 churches in the diocese, only 23 are trained.
As seen in the Bishop's Powerpoint, the Diocese has not escaped the 21 years of war in southern Sudan. It currently faces great difficulties in communication with the rest of its Sudanese dioceses and outside world due to bad roads and bridges, lack of elections, power, and telecommunication system. Bishop Kuctiel can be reached at kuctiel@yahoo.com.
