Refrain from buying cheap online cars, warns police
"Most potential buyers are duped into making electronic payments of vehicles they have never physically seen or touched, while others at least saw them but never got to drive them."
Rietgat police have warned the community and visitors to the policing precinct about conmen and women who are defrauding unsuspecting buyers into buying vehicles that do not exist.
Police spokesperson Captain Stephen Malukeka said this was after a spike in the number of cases opened at the station.
Complainants say they were scammed out of thousands of rands while attempting to buy vehicles they have seen advertised online.
Maluleka said most “potential buyers” are duped into making electronic payments of vehicles they have never physically seen or touched, while others at least saw them but never got to drive them.
“These con artists lure their prey to taverns, malls and traffic intersections. Then they had to wait for ‘their vehicles’ to be delivered or taken for a car wash, tyre change or refilling of fuel.
“One of the victims, a few weeks ago, saw an advertisement of a VW Polo on Facebook’s marketplace sold by one ‘Sam Mashaba’. He contacted him and drove to a tavern in block R where there were four other unknown men. One of them had the ‘papers’ of the car.”
After seeing the vehicle, the victim was satisfied with the condition and electronically deposited money which was ‘discounted’ by R3 000.
“As they were still talking, one of the four men took the vehicle under a guise of going to fill up on fuel. He never came back and subsequently ‘Sam’ also disappeared into the wilderness much to the victim’s surprise.
“We would like to send a strong message to the entire community, especially those who have resigned, retired or those who have saved their hard-earned money for years, to desist from such transactions in some taverns or dodgy places.”
Maluleka said they would like to urge the community to visit accredited dealerships if they want to purchase vehicles. They would also like to assure those who have fallen victim that the long arm of the law cannot be evaded forever, and soon the net will close on the suspects.
“Community members are also urged to be vigilant about things that are too good to be true. If your gut feeling says something could go wrong, listen to it avoid becoming a victim of scammers.”
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Things to look out for to avoid being a victim:
– Scammers put pressure on you to act immediately – resist the pressure;
– Scammers gives you payment options – pay attention and be vigilant;
– Scammers are smooth operators – don’t fall for their sweet talk;
– Scammers act as if they care about your needs even if they don’t know you – never allow them to act as if you are at their mercy;
– Scammers are very particular in their dress code – don’t allow their dress sense to fool you into thinking that they are legit;
– When in doubt, stop and call that one person you trust for advice.
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