THE South African Police Service (SAPS) has issued a warning to members of the public about a scam involving fraudulent letters and phone calls that purportedly are sent from police.

This scam continues to circulate in various provinces, warned national police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Amanda van Wyk.

“These fake letters, often distributed via WhatsApp, bear the SAPS logo and contain the names, contact details of senior SAPS officers and the addresses of legitimate SAPS offices. In some instances, the scammers also use the names of police stations that do not exist. The scammers use this information to deceive recipients into sharing personal details under false pretenses.

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“The content of the letters is often tailored according to the victim’s location, with changes made to names, addresses and contact persons to make the communication appear authentic. These WhatsApp messages are preceded by phone calls from individuals posing as police officials, who falsely claim that criminal cases have been opened against the victim. These ‘police officers’ then coerce the victim to pay over a certain amount to make his or her supposed case to ‘disappear’,” she said.

Van Wyk urged the public to not respond to these fraudulent messages or phone calls, pay any money, nor provide or confirm any personal information such as ID numbers, addresses, or banking details.

“The SAPS does not communicate with the public via WhatsApp or video calls.”

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