Durban North SAPS warns of new fraud scam

DURBAN North police have warned the community about a fraud scam involving a person claiming to be ‘Colonel Van Niekerk’ from provincial head office.

According to provincial SAPS spokesperson, Captain Nqobile Gwala, the ‘Colonel’ would call people and tell them they have a rape case against them and a warrant of arrest has been issued.

“He would promise to assist them to evade arrest if they pay him an amount of money. In a recent incident a potential victim was told that he was a suspect in a rape case and a sex worker, who was not paid for services, had opened a case of rape. The victim was told to pay the escort agency an amount of R3 000 in order to evade prosecution as a warrant of arrest was issued. The victim knew that he was not a suspect in any case of rape and was surprised by the whole ordeal.

In other crime news: Scam artist attempts to defraud domestic worker’s employers

“We are appealing to the community not to fall victim to such scams. Under no circumstances will a police officer will ask for money from suspects or the victims of crime. Victims of such scam or any other scam are urged to report to their nearest police station or call Crime Stop on 08600 10111,” she said.

Captain Raymond Deokaran, spokesperson for the Durban North SAPS said the person attempting to defraud residents had also used the alias Warrant Officer Ngema.

“They would claim to be from the Durban North or uMhlanga police station. The residents contacted said they could hear a police radio in the background which is being used to fool people into thinking this is legitimate. In one of the cases opened at the station, we had a resident say the scam artist had attempted to defraud him of R500. The suspect had asked him to eWallet the money in order for the case to disappear. This is a pure scam and we urge residents not to fall for it,” he said.

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