“They have managed to get some of their money paid back into their Sassa accounts”.
These were the optimistic words from Fiona Anderson, the sister and daughter of two elderly Little Falls residents who were scammed out of their Sassa pension payments in the months of April and May.
Both victims, Lucille (the mother) and Sean (the brother), cried foul after monies disappeared from their Sassa accounts. Lucille had lost R1 150, while Sean was conned out of R800 in April. Sean lost a further R1 700 in May.
Read the initial article here:
https://roodepoortnorthsider.co.za/295760/elderly-folk-cry-foul-over-missing-sassa-monies/
They were then sent from pillar to post (one branch to another of the Post Office) trying to discover what happened to the payments. They eventually contacted the Northsider for help and to raise awareness about Sassa scams. The Northsider followed up on the matter with the Sassa head office.
Sassa’s senior communications manager, Nandi Mosia, responded, saying they would be conducting an investigation into these matters.
Fiona later reverted to the publication, telling us that some of the money had been refunded.
“I got a call from the Krugersdorp Post Office asking if we could pay them a visit, and following that meeting, amounts of R800 and R1 150 was paid back to my brother and mother,” she said.
She also indicated that they were told that the money had been stolen from their accounts.
When asked about Sean’s outstanding R1 700, Fiona said a case of fraud was still being investigated by Sassa and the Post Office.
It is quite evident that Sassa scams have become rife lately. For example, the Vryheid Herald reported on the arrest of four suspects who were caught withdrawing large amounts of money using Sassa cards in KwaZulu-Natal. Before this, the paper also reported on six men who were nabbed in the Vryheid CBD after being found in possession of 400 fake Sassa cards.
