KEMPTON Park Civic Centre security officers want to warn locals about criminals targeting people outside and near the civic centre.
On August 14, officers Velly Motsweni and Moses Seanego busted a 24-year-old Mozambican man who allegedly claimed he was a mine worker and needed a lift to go and meet with a particular white man who buys platinum.
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“The suspect approached a motorist in a BMW X5 waiting for his girlfriend who was still on shift at the civic centre around 3.30pm. He told the unsuspecting motorist in IsiZulu that he had run out of airtime and asked to use the man’s cellphone.
“When the man said he also did not have airtime, the suspect said he actually did have little airtime and was wondering if the motorist could speak to this so called ‘white man’ on his behalf because he could not speak English. That was when he gave him his ‘I am a mine worker looking to sell platinum to some white man’ story,” said Motsweni.
In a letter handed to EXPRESS by the officers, the motorist, who asked not to be named, explained that when he finally spoke to the so called “white man”, he could tell by the accent the man was not a white man and also had the same accent as the suspect.
The motorist told the officers he suddenly remembered he was once scammed with a scam similar to this one and when he realised the young man wanted him to give him a lift to go and talk to the white man on his behalf, he quickly called the security officers.
“We caught the suspect and he started crying, confessing he did not have platinum. We want to warn people because we see a lot of crime in the area. Some people leave their vehicles thinking their vehicles are locked only to find that criminals had jammed their signal and the next thing they come to us hurting because their laptops disappeared.
“In this case, it could have been worse. An unsuspecting motorist could have been convinced into the con that could have turned into a robbery or hijacking, while he thinks an opportunity to make a quick buck has just landed in his lap,” said Ntloedibe.
The officers said the suspect was not arrested at the police station because the man who almost fell victim to his alleged scam did not open a case and there were no signs of losses.
“This suspect is a lucky man and we want to warn residents because he is still out there. We want people to be safe and be very careful around strangers in Kempton Park,” said the security officers.
