Another motorist scammed at the Florida DLTC
"I then paid the R8 000 and was told to make a plan for the balance as the system kept blocking him. So far I'd been scammed out of R14 000."
Florida resident Lydon Press is the latest victim to be scammed by the notorious and rather questionable characters who offer their services outside the Florida Driving Licence Testing Centre (DLTC).
According to Lydon, he had lost his driver’s licence on April 13 and was very reluctant to even bother applying for a new one as it was the long weekend.
On April 20 he went to the Florida DLTC as he was on leave and wouldn’t get another opportunity to do so.
He claimed that on arrival he was told that he would not be helped as he had not made an online booking, which he then tried to do without success. A despondent Lyndon left the centre.
When he was walking towards his car, he was approached by what seemed to be car guards outside who asked him what the problem was.
After explaining to them that he didn’t have an online booking they promised him assistance and asked him to write down his contact details and ID number on a piece of paper, and that staff inside would assist him.
“Out of desperation I agreed. I was told to pay R2 000 for an outstanding fine, and then I would receive my printout and temporary licence. I paid it to the middle man and then got a call saying the department was closing soon and I needed to return early in the morning for my fingerprints to be taken.
“I went there early the next morning and was told the transaction had been handed over to the supervisor because it was taking longer than the usual transaction time.
“The ‘manager’ called me and informed me that I had a R4 000 court order against me which needed to be paid to complete the transaction.
“I wanted to swipe my card for the transaction but was told that the card facilities were offline due to load-shedding, which was true.
“After making the required payment at the ATM I got another call to confirm funds had been received, and my transaction would be processed shortly. Thereafter I got a call about outstanding ‘enforcements’ to the value of R16 000, and that they could half that amount so the transaction could be processed.
“I then paid the R8 000 and was told to make a plan for the balance as the system kept blocking him. So far I’d been scammed out of R14 000,” said Lyndon.
He told the Record that after realising that he had been scammed, he went to Florida Police Station multiple times trying to open a case, but it seemed to be a blame game between Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) and the police.
Because the scammer wanted even more money from him, Lyndon said he was even part of a small sting operation with the Florida Police Detectives on Goldman Street, which resulted in the arrest of one of the suspects. They realised that the syndicate was huge with more than 20 people involved.
When the Record asked the Acting Director of Licencing, Teddy Msimanga to comment on the matter, he did not hesitate to warn the public not to accept help from anyone outside Florida DLTC.
Msimanga stressed that no official business would be conducted outside of the centre’s boundaries under any circumstances, and pleaded with the public to report any misconduct.
“Community members must go straight inside and not speak to anyone in the street as they will get all the information they need inside the centre. There are no shortcuts through the process; it has to be thorough to ensure people are properly tested,” said Msimanga.
Members of the public are encouraged to report all criminal incidents or suspicious activity at the licensing centre to Florida Police on 071 675 7145/ 7146, or 011 831 7000.
