A Doonside pensioner is R3,000 out of pocket after she was scammed by a con artist who claimed her domestic worker had died and her family needed money for her funeral.
The pensioner, who preferred to remain anonymous, received a phone call on her landline from a man at about 5.45am on Sunday, 21 February.
“The man said my domestic worker had died. He knew my domestic worker’s name, her sister’s name and my name,” she said.
“He phoned me on my cellphone and said my domestic worker’s sister wanted to speak to me. A woman came on the line, crying and she asked if I can help them financially.”
They asked for R5,000 and not suspecting it was a scam, the woman immediately transferred R3,000 via her cellphone to a Capitec Bank account.
“I only found out it was a scam when I phoned my domestic worker’s sister five days later to ask how she had died.
A St Winifreds resident said they also received a call from the con artists, but quick thinking saved them from being scammed.
“They phoned my husband on Thursday, 25 February,” said Janet Dawson. “They said our domestic worker had died. They said she had a funeral policy, but they needed money for food and the wake. The man on the phone claimed to be her son.”
They asked for R3,000, but Janet got suspicious and contacted a woman who also employs her domestic worker and realised it was a scam.
