Cyber crime hits Phikwe

Onalenna Kelebeile | Wednesday May 25, 2016 17:04

He said the criminals’ modus operandi was to advertise non-existent houses for rent on social media and demand deposits that have to be paid through e-Wallet.

“Once the deposit is obtained the criminals then deactivate both the social media account and the cellphone number.  “Thus far, no suspect has been arrested and we suspect that the culprit could be one person,” he said. In another cyber crime incident here, a woman lost P30,000 after supposedly paying for courier and customs charges for a gift from a “lover” she met online.  After sending money for the charges, no gift arrived. 

“In some instances, the woman will be called by somebody identifying himself as the courier company official who will demand a certain amount of money for the parcel to be released from South Africa to her,” said Nlebesi. He added that similar cases are emerging in the area. “I advise women, who are mostly the victims, to stop releasing money to people they have never met,” Nlebesi advised.