Centurion businessman André Vorster has fallen victim to a scam when equipment from his camera rental company was sold by a customer who claimed the items were stolen.
Vorster rented a Canon 70D camera and lens to a man who visited his business some months ago. The following day, the man claimed that the entire system had been stolen. He said he had an affidavit to prove his claim.
Vorster’s suspicions were aroused when he saw an advert on OLX for a Canon 70D, being sold by the same man who rented the equipment from him. When he contacted the man, he found out that the camera had already been sold.
About a month ago, another man tried the same scam on Vorster. He claimed that the Nikon D600 he rented was stolen and that he also had an affidavit to prove his claim.
Vorster kept a watchful eye on OLX and found an advert for the camera, placed by the man who rented it.
Vorster alerted the police in Lyttelton and worked with an officer to corner the thief after arranging to meet the seller. The man arrived with the camera and the police arrested him.
Vorster said: “People need to be very careful when they buy from online sites such as Gumtree and OLX. To me those sites have become a drop-off point for stolen goods.”
Stephen Ballot of OLX advised people never to pay a holding deposit for item they wished to buy.
“Only hand over money when you have the item in your hands. If a seller is asking for money and seems unwilling to show the item to you then rather walk away from the sale. If it seems too good to be true, it usually is.”
He said OLX had full-time moderators who look over every ad, and a dedicated support team to help with any potential inquiry into scams. They could be reached at support@olx.co.za
For your daily news, like Rekord on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
