Alexandra Police Station wished residents well this festive season and urged for vigilance against marauding criminals.
Captain Stephen Malatji said, “Criminals are aware that lots of money saved throughout the year is circulating and want part of it. “One of their targets are those sharing their stokvel and other group dividends at places they assume are safe.”
He added that they were robbed when going to the place of sharing with the withdrawn money or while sharing their money even at one of their homes. “There is a high probability that the information about their sharing is leaked from within the group resulting in those bringing the money being followed and robbed.”
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He urged them to ask banks to transfer the amounts electronically into each member’s account.
He said other criminals called their victims at night pretending to be bank officials wanting to prevent a potential fraud taking place from their accounts. “Responding in a dazed state, the victims provide the criminals with sufficient information on their accounts including pin numbers which enables them to commit the fraud. “Afterwards, the criminals call the victims to pacify them only to later receive bank notification about withdrawals from their account.”
Malatjie said the fraud is later confirmed by the bank when the account holder queries the withdrawal. “But it will not be the bank’s fault as the victim would have provided the criminals with sufficient information to enable the crime.
“The victim could even be charged for negligent conduct by providing confidential personal information to strangers.”
He added that other victims were followed by a gang from the banks. “Ahead of them, would be a gang member who drops an envelope stuffed with paper. When the victim picks it up with the intention to hand it back, another gang member following from behind stops them and suggests that they share the contents from a secluded spot.”
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Malatjie said when they are about to share the spoils from the envelope, other gang members pounce, flush fake police cards and ‘arrest’ them allegedly for robbing someone. “They then force them into a vehicle, search them and swap the victim’s own envelope with money with the one stuffed with paper.
“The victim is then dropped and warned to desist from robbery, but the criminals proceed with the one who had urged him or her to share what they would have picked.”
He said the victim will be shocked to find only pieces of paper when they later open the envelope which would be similar to the one they received from the bank. He said while the trick is common, residents are still conned and should be more vigilant.
“They could be killed to silence them if they are suspected to have identified the culprits.”
