UPDATE: Ballito holiday home scam nightmare continues

Two weeks after the Courier ran an article about a Ballito holiday accommodation scam, posts advertising the same home have continued to flood multiple Facebook groups, luring more victims into the trap.

The advert presented holidaymakers with an unbeatable deal, at only R750 a night, however it really has been too good to be true.

Another victim, who asked to remain anonymous, was caught out early last week after being told by the scammer, who goes by the name of Ravi Moodley from Seabreeze Holiday Lettings that the deal on offer was about to end and she would have to make immediate payment to secure the booking.

Beware: Ballito ‘holiday home’ scam nightmare

After paying the R700 deposit for her holiday, which was booked for next year, she could no longer find the Facebook post, which raised suspicion.

“I went onto Google and that’s when I found the Courier article about this same scam, and immediately requested a refund,” said the victim, who lost her money and opened up a case at her local police station.

Moodley previously claimed to be from Palm Oceans Holiday Lettings.

“He is still posting the ad and people are still getting conned – how many more people is he going to scam?

“We need something to happen today!”

According to Umhlali SAPS captain Vinny Pillay, five cases of fraud have been opened at various police stations across the country, including Umhlali SAPS, and all point directly to the same scam.

After paying a deposit, the victims reportedly receive a copy of a fraudulent affidavit stating that the home belongs to the scammer.

The Ashley Road home, however, is a private residence belonging to Ugeshni Naicker, who has already had to turn away multiple victims.

Last month Naicker had a family who had driven all the way from Johannesburg, arrive after 9pm on a Sunday for a ‘late check-in’.

This unfortunate family had allegedly paid upfront for their week-long holiday, only to be left high and dry.

One of the victims took to social media recently to call out the alleged scammer, with many Facebook users coming forward to say they had also been caught.

Pillay urged holidaymakers to take caution when booking accommodation, and not to deposit any money without doing their homework first.

“Often the victims do not check the house before coming here on holiday and on the day they arrive, they find that the home is either not what they paid for, or is a private residence,” said Pillay.

Attempts to contact Ravi Moodley again were unsuccessful. Following the previous article he had agreed to meet with the Courier that week, but he never arrived.

If you have been caught out, or if you have any information that may assist the police in this case contact Umhlali SAPS on 032-947 9900.

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