Don’t fall into a scam trap

I thought I witnessed a crime in town on Tuesday only to find out the following day when I got to the office that I nearly became a victim of a scam.

So here’s what happened.

I was coming from the taxi rank, walking towards the office, when I came across a guy who dropped a plastic money bag with a roll of what I thought was money.

I tried calling him to pick it up; I’m not sure if he didn’t hear me or pretended not to.

Behind him was a guy who picked up the plastic bag and told me to stop calling the guy and asked that we move to a private place where we could share the money.

As we were walking, I asked my colleague to meet me halfway and as she was approaching, I called her to come to us.

The guy who dropped the money bag came and asked if we saw anything.

That was when I pulled my colleague to the nearest shop and they moved from where we were standing.

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When I told my colleague what had happened, she suggested that we go look for them and tell the guy, who dropped the money, what I had seen.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, in this case, they were nowhere to be seen when we left the shop.

We asked a car guard to tell the man what had happened if he saw him again.

On Wednesday when I arrived at the office, I told my other colleagues what had happened.

That was when I found out that it was a scam.

This is how they apparently operate.

The guys work together.

The one who picks up the bag takes you to a private place and then the one who dropped the bag comes and robs you.

Springsites beware.

According to Standard Bank SA, here is how you can tell if something is a scam:

• what you are offered or promised sounds too good to be true

• you are promised large sums of money for very little or no effort on your part

• you’re asked to provide money up front, for whatever reason, in order to receive the money or prize

• you’re asked to confirm personal or account details via a hyperlink, icon or attachment in an email or over the phone.

If you fall victim to a scam, contact your local police station, and if it is money or bank related, you can contact your bank for assistance.

Let’s not let the scammers get away with theft.