Scam alert — Fake cops ask for money to return stolen car

Scammers have found yet another way to steal money from unsuspecting South Africans — this time impersonating police investigating the theft of a car.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, a victim said their car was stolen two weeks ago from in front of her home.

“We immediately called the police, and a case was registered at Brixton police station. Uniform cops came to the house at about 20:00 and took our statements,” said the victim.

Then, last Monday, she received several missed calls from a single number, followed by a message: “Hello. This is Captain Mohale from Brixton police. Please answer your phone.”

Upon calling the number, a man answered and claimed he was Captain Mohale. He claimed her car had been found in good condition and was in the police’s possession.

However, the caller added that the vehicle was in another jurisdiction, so it would take up to 15 weeks to be released — unless she paid an admin fee of R1,500.

“I told him I didn’t have that kind of money in my account and he asked me how much I had,” said the victim.

“I know the red lights should have started flashing seriously when he started haggling about the admin fee, but I was just so hopeful that I would get my car back.”

After paying the scammer R200 via e-wallet, she never heard from him again — and the police have since confirmed that the victim’s car has not been recovered.

A well-known scam

Willem Els of the Institute for Security Studies said the scam is “quite well known.”

Although many victims realise it is a scam, he added, they pay anyway in the hopes that it is the thieves calling and paying will result in their car not being stripped and sold off.

“In the past, police have successfully traced some of these numbers and found the scammer already in a Pretoria prison cell,” said Els.

He also believes police officers may be involved — either directly or by supplying scammers docket information.

“The scammers just know too much about the vehicles, such as marks on the car as well as items that were left in the car. It is as if they have read the victim statement,” said Els.

Gauteng police spokesperson Colonel Mavela Masondo said his department is aware of the scam and has established a team of detectives to “investigate, trace, and arrest the suspects.”

“Police would like to make the community aware that under no circumstances will the police ask the community member to deposit money for the service rendered by the police,” said Masondo.

“We appeal to all those who fell victim of such a scam to report to the police immediately.”

South Africa a hotbed for scams

Unfortunately, this is just one of many scams running rife in South Africa.

Deepfake ads are particularly popular at the moment. These involve the likeness of famous South Africans — like Elon Musk, Johann Rupert, and Nicky Oppenheimer — being used to claim fake returns on investment opportunities.

Because these individuals are trusted by the public and known for their financial savvy, many South Africans trust what these deepfake adverts are selling.

Most recently, the trading platform Banxso came under fire after deep fake ads promoted its platform.

These advertisements used Elon Musk’s likeness, and investors who clicked on these ads have reportedly lost millions of rands.

Banxso, which sponsors Bafana Bafana and UFC fighter Dricus du Plessis, has denied involvement in or benefiting from the ads.

Earlier this month, investigations found that the likeness of urology academic Professor Kgomotso Mathabe had been used in deepfakes by scammers to sell male potency products that did not exist.

“There were videos of me talking about the benefits of this medication versus the benefits of FDA-approved Viagra and Cialis,” said Mathabe.

“My colleagues would ask why I was trashing FDA-approved medication.”

Another popular scam is similar to the aforementioned fake police scam — except the scammers pretend to be representatives of well-known businesses.

For example, JSE-listed mining company Afrimat has had scammers pretending to be its representatives on the messaging platform Telegram for nearly two years.

Last month, it issued its third statement to the public, warning them of these con artists.

“I wish to irrevocably state that Afrimat has never, and does not intend to in future, offer any financial, investment or related services through any platform, including but not limited to Telegram,” said Afrimat CEO Andries van Heerden.

“Afrimat only trades through the regulated stock exchanges of the JSE and A2X.”

“Any other investment scheme or financial service on any platform other than these regulated stock exchanges, that are trying to lend credibility to their schemes by utilising the Afrimat name or impersonating our people, are false and misrepresent Afrimat’s involvement or endorsement.”