He said there were numerous cases where victims had come forward claiming they had been victims of fraud.
“In a recent case, a woman had advertised furniture to the value of approximately R40 000 to R50 000 online.” Muthan said she received a message from an interested buyer who deposited a cheque into her account. “She received confirmation from her bank that the cheque had been deposited,” Muthan explained.
A truck arrived to collect the goods from the victim but a few days later she realised that the cheque was fraudulent. “Now the lady is out of pocket. Both her cash and her goods are gone,” he said.
“We are too trusting,” said Muthan. “Residents need to do research before items are released and make sure the money is in their account.” Balan said residents should phone their banks and ensure the money had been cleared before they handed over any goods.
He said incidents of online fraud were a national problem.
