FIRST-YEAR students have been warned to take extra precautions when registering to study at a tertiary institution and not to make any payments to people on the street or in vehicles.
It seems that criminals are promising students entrance to universities and are asking the students to pay the registration fees to them. They then take the students to their vehicles where the payments are made. The students are issued with replica registration forms and a student number belonging to someone else, making the deal look legitimate. The student is then sent home and told to return with the balance of the money for their chosen course.
Last Wednesday, Berea police received information about this scam and initiated an investigation. A 26-year-old man was arrested and was found in possession of fraudulent documents used to carry out this scam. The suspect was charged with fraud and was detained in the Berea police cells. It is believed that more suspects will be arrested soon. The police appeal to anyone who has fallen victim to this scam to report the incident to their local police station.
