More people are falling for money scams in and outside Estcourt, then find themselves in an abyss of depression when no one can help them.

Domestic worker and mother of five (wished not to be named) has found herself deeply plunged in this scam and is now fearing for her life, because people she gathered the sum of R30 000+ to put into what she was promised would be R50 000, are all harassing her in need of their money.

She shared that she fell for this scam after her daughter was sick and recommended one of the doctors who are known through flyers that are handed out on a daily basis in town, to heal her and he did. She (mother) then explained that her daughter’s healer called both she and her husband into a dark room at the place in which he works, and showed them a barrel of money. He said he could connect with their ancestors and a sum of R50 000+ is what they wanted to gift the couple with.

“This man said in order for us to get the money, we should pay an amount of R35 000 and the money will be ours. I believed him because he had proven his legitimacy when he saved our daughter,” said the mother.

Desperate for money, she fell for the trap and went out to borrow huge sums of money from different people as well as loan sharks, in believing that she’d pay all their money in full. However, she kept getting calls from the healer who would further lure her by telling her she is getting closer to her money, all she needs to do is add a bit more money, and she would. But seven months down the line, she realised that what she was promised would not be fulfilled.

“As a domestic worker I earn R1 500 and at times it is not enough to feed my large family, so I saw this as an opportunity for better things. I believed he could help me because he had healed my daughter and without knowing me, had told me of the troubles in my home.

“After months of borrowing money from everyone I possibly could, he kept telling me that everything was coming into plan and that I should add a little more; it was then that I realised it was not real, but it was too late because I was R35 000 too deep in debts,” explained the woman.

She added that not only has the situation at home worsened, but people are continuously knocking on her door, demanding she pay what she owes, at times taking both her husband’s pension money and her some of her salary, leaving the family to starve. In her dire need to get the “doctor” and have her money back, she went to the police to open a case, but was told she had no case.

Upon an interview Captain Siyabonga Kheswa of the Estcourt Police Station affirmed that there are countless cases pertaining to people who have fallen for these scams.

These cases that involve people from foreign lands who claim to be traditional healers, but don’t succeed in court due to insubstantial evidence; it in turn has not been found to be a crime.

“It is not fraud, it may be theft by false pretences, but we have come to a situation where magistrates have said this is a waste of time, there is no crime here.

If a person goes voluntarily and agrees it is no crime, because the accused will turn around and say, there was money to come, but the victim went to the police way too soon,” said Captain Kheswa.

Lawyer, Reason Ngcobo said that depending on the evidence, police should open cases pertaining to this matter.

“If there is enough evidence for a person to be prosecuted, it is not up to the police not to open a case.

However, it happens that prosecutors shun these cases due to lack of evidence, because they don’t think there would be a successful prosecution,” said Ngcobo.

People have been warned about such scams via all facets of news throughout the country, yet more people find themselves in the same pit, annually.

According to Captain Kheswa, police media liaison officers have warned people of money scams, but he thinks people fall for them because of greed.

The captain further added that it is advisable that people not fall for these traps, because never has it been that money can be attained by paying for it.