Two Pretoria men are facing several criminal charges for running an illicit scam from a prison cell.
In the scam, the two prisoners would use a cellphone to contact various police stations while posing as senior police officers.
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They would ask for information about complainants and cases involving hijackings and motor vehicle thefts.
The two con artists would then use this information to contact crime victims – again posing as police officers – informing victims that their vehicles have been recovered; and telling them that they must deposit money through e-wallet/money market to get their vehicles back.
The duo’s scam was discovered by the national anti-corruption investigation unit last week.
The unit launched their investigation after receiving anonymous complaints about the scam, said police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Katlego Mogale.
Details about how and where Lucas Masemola (44) from Soshanguve and Tebogo Makena (24) from Mamelodi, obtained their information would form part of the unit’s investigation.
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The pair had apparently scammed people in various provinces.
The two were subsequently arrested at ODI correctional services facility in Mabopane.
They were serving time for hijacking and possession of suspected stolen property.
According to Mogale, they were arrested in possession of the cellphones they had used to scam people.
They appeared in the Kempton Park regional court on Tuesday, 14 November.
They were remanded in custody until 4 December 2017 for further investigation.
Mogale urged members of the public to come forward with information pertaining to the scam.
Anyone with information could contact Captain Kwena Sedaamela on 071-361-9419 and Sergeant Mpho Mahishi on 082-770-5404 during office hours.
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