How a Facebook scammer posing as a US official was caught in the Western Cape
A 29-year-old man who posed as a US government official and swindled almost R100,000 is expected to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
The man who was arrested by the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation (known as the Hawks) faces charges of fraud and money laundering.
Provincial Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Fikiswa Matoti said the arrest follows an extensive investigation into fraud allegations, including the swindling of R85,800 from an unsuspecting victim in December 2022.
“It is alleged that the complainant was contacted via e-mail by a suspect who introduced himself as a representative of the government of the United States of America. The complainant was promised a Covid-19-related grant on condition that she deposit money into a certain bank account,” Matoti said.
The suspect sent the victim a list of other individuals also said to be qualifying for the same grant.
“The complainant recognised her friend’s name on the list and contacted her on Facebook. The friend confirmed receipt of the payout. However, it was later discovered that, all along, she had been communicating with a scammer who had hacked her friend’s Facebook account,” Matoti said.
The matter was reported to the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation for investigating which led to the arrest of the suspect in Strand in the Western Cape on Wednesday, May 21.
robin.francke@iol.co.za
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