William Awayo told the Midrand Reporter that he regrets having paid R6000 for a rental deposit. “On 26 November the supposed owner of the unit promised to take me to the property so I could view it. He did not contact me; when I tried calling him, his number was not answered all day.”
Awayo said that the following day, he still couldn’t contact the alleged scammer via his phone. “I finally went to the property and the person staying there told me I was not the first person to claim that I had paid a deposit and expected to move in.” Awayo was told by the current tenant that he had been scammed. Awayo was also told that someone keeps advertising that the unit is vacant – when it’s not.
“I guess the man who scammed me slipped up because he emailed me a copy of his ID and bank account details,” Awayo added.
The alleged scammer was not available for comment as his cellphone number has been on voicemail for days.
On 2 December Awayo opened a case of fraud at the Midrand Police Station. Midrand police spokesperson Matome Tlamela commented, “The complainant claims that he was scammed [out] of R6 000. We are going to investigate the case.”
Midrand Reporter has in its possession the copy of the alleged scammer’s ID, his supposed bank details and a copy of the ‘lease’. Police are in the process of verifying whether these documents are legitimate or not.
Midrand police urged those who have fallen victim to the rental scam to open a case of fraud at the Midrand Police Station.
This incident comes two weeks after a rental agency in Midrand, Seeff Properties, warned residents of a possible rental scam in Carlswald.
Anyone with information can contact Midrand Police Station on 011 347 1600
