A South African powerlifting champion has been left powerless and might not be able to defend her title at the upcoming World Championships, after the money raised for her trip has been lost due to alleged fraud.
Nicole Loubser (18) was recently left with only R1 836.69, when there was originally R52 000 in her bank account.
Nicole said that she opened an account at a bank in Corkwood Square in Kariega in April this year.
Since she was chosen to represent South Africa at the Powerlifting World Championship in Turkey next month and the African Championships in Morocco two weeks after that, as well as the Commonwealth Games in New Zealand in December, money was raised for her travelling expenses, accommodation, visas, equipment and Protea clothing.
“[The other day] I discovered that money was taken (stolen) out of account without my permission and knowledge. This was a great shock to me,” Nicole said.
“Imagine having this dream of participating in the World Championships and becoming a world champion. This could open doors for me with scholarships and sponsors!”
According to Nicole, she immediately went to the branch, where an employee tried for more than two hours to get a hold of the bank’s fraud department without any success.
“That is just hilarious. The following morning [she] managed to get through to the fraud department and registered the case of fraud.
“She was the only person that was kind enough to tell us that the money was transferred to another bank account. A fraud docket was also opened at the Kariega Police Station,” Nicole explained.
She had received three SMSs, one stating that an investigation had been launched and the others to say that the investigation is still ongoing.
“The last correspondence I received was on July 12 from the bank that there may be a chance of a refund if I understood the e-mail correctly.
“At the moment I will not be able to have any more fundraisers and that is why I desperately need the money back. I urgently need these funds to start paying for expenses as mentioned above.”
Police spokesperson, Col. Priscilla Naidu, confirmed that police are investigating a case of fraud following allegations made by an 18-year-old complainant.
“It is alleged that a substantial amount of money was stolen out of the complainant’s bank account in June 2022.
The case is under investigation and no arrests have yet been made,” Naidu said.
