The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation is sending a strong warning to the public, especially women about dating scams.
The Hawks has received a number of complaints around Limpopo province and their available information indicates that women who are recently divorced, widowed, inherited valuable assets or having a stable job but unmarried are mostly targeted by the scammers who pretend to be looking for a good wife to marry within a very short space of time.
Spokesperson for the Hawks in Limpopo Captain Matimba Maluleke said the scammers would target their potential victims and after a short while, they come up with business proposals where they promise them unbelievable dividends.
“They also require their potential victims to sell all their valuable assets or withdraw all their monies and make a deposit into the bank accounts that the scammers provide in order to start a lucrative looking business idea.
After successfully depositing the money into the scammers accounts the victims will never see or hear from the them again”, said Maluleke.
He said many victims are left drowning in heavy debts and most of the scammers are reportedly foreign nationals.
Maluleke said in some incidents victims are abruptly approached by men who claim to be prophets connected to their ancestors and they tell them everything about their upbringing and current lives.
In the end they ask the victim to resign from their jobs and bring all their pension money for rituals.
In October this year a 53 year old woman was scammed of R1.6 million as a result of dating scam.
He said the scammers have tendencies of always coming up with business proposals, they don’t want to be seen in the public, they hide their identification documents and never take their would be victim to their places of residence.
Maluleke said it is better for the would be victims to run away from scammers before they run away with all money or assets that they have worked hard for.