Moorreesburg police would like to warn the public about internet fraud involving loans and purchasing of vehicles over the internet. This form of internet fraud has escalated in the past year.
Suspects use the names of registered loan companies and once contacted the suspects request an administrative fee. Once the fee is paid another email is send to the victim indicating that an insurance fee must be paid before securing the loan. These costs are usually thousands of rand.
Once these fees have been paid the victim never receives the “loan” amount. Sergeant Nicolette Visagie, local police spokesperson, says it is therefore best to enquire from a bank or loan facility about processes required to obtain a loan before paying exorbitant amounts of cash to access one. The public is urged not to pay any fees for a loan made over the internet or telephone.
In the case of purchasing a vehicle via a Facebook/gumtree or internet advertisement, the seller will request a direct internet payment of either the full amount or a deposit amount before delivering the vehicle.
When the payment is made, the buyer never receives the vehicle.
The public is urged not to pay any fees to any seller and to do the sale personally, where both the buyer and seller are present and the money is transferred via the right channels.
