SAPS
Two suspects who allegedly defrauded a woman in an online dating scam in Gauteng are behind bars and set to make their second court appearance on Friday.
A spokesperson for the Hawks Captain Ndivhuwo Mulamu says the first suspect, 40-year-old Ometese Ebor, was looking for a potential partner on social media.
She introduced herself as Allen Grey, a prominent businessman in the Western Cape and borrowed a total amount of R1.9 million from a female complainant between 2016 and 2018.
Captain Mulamu says it is alleged that Ebor started borrowing money just days after she started "dating" the complainant.
She says Ebor, also known as Tessy, told his "girlfriend" that his bank accounts were hacked and she transferred money into different bank accounts including R857 000 into his business account.
Captain Mulamu says the complainant became suspicious and approached the Hawks in Johannesburg.
She says the Hawks successfully secured an arrest warrant against all positively linked perpetrators on the matter and arrested Ebor on Sunday while she was attending church.
Ebor is being charged with fraud and money laundering.
The Hawks arrested another suspect linked to the crime who was released on bail of R3 000.
Thirty-one-year-old Fortune Nomfusi was arrested earlier this year in Khayelitsha in the Western Cape.
(Fortune Nomfusi)
She will be appearing alongside Ebor at their next appeareance in the Palm Ridge Magistrates Court on Friday.
In October last year, eight suspects were arrested in Cape Town in a joint operation involving the FBI, the United States Secret Service, local authorities and Interpol.
The FBI estimates that to date, more than 100 people have lost more than R100 million in romance scams since 2011.
