The woman, who does not wish to be named for fear of further victimisation, lives in Durban and would often travel to Bryanston to see the traditional healer between the months of June and October in 2012.
She decided to come forward after she saw a 2013 article published on the Sandton Chronicle website titled, Police bust fake traditional healer.
“I couldn’t believe it, that was the exact same place where I was in Bryanston,” she said.
“[The traditional healer’s] driver used to pick me up at Sandton City,” she explained.
“I have honestly been too ashamed to talk about it, for fear of alienation and I was threatened by the healer that he would bewitch me if I mentioned this to anyone.”
She said, at first, the healer showed signs of magic. “He made R1 000 out of R10,” she said.
“He promised to make more money out of it, like R10 million. Nothing happened, instead, my money disappeared.”
The woman said the money she gave the healer disappeared and was money she had borrowed from banks and close friends, some of which she has not been able to pay back.
“When I made a noise about my money disappearing, the so-called doctor threatened that if I ever told anyone [my family and I would be killed] because he got to know so much about my family,” she said.
The woman never reported the incident to the police, and added that she ended up being hospitalised in a psychiatric facility and diagnosed with a severe bipolar disorder.
Warrant Officer Moses Maphakela, spokesperson for the Bramley police said it was important for the victim to report the crime to the authorities.
“A criminal case can be opened if money was actually stolen but if it is a case of muti not working and now the client is upset, then there is nothing we can do about that,” explained Maphakela.
Have you been a victim of a scam by a traditional healer? Tell us on our Sandton Chronicle Facebook page
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