By Everson Luhanga
- The scammer calls himself Captain Mabuwa and tells vendors at Alexandra SAPS to send airtime vouchers to process their payment.
- Rose’s Kitchen owner Tumelo Masite lost R500 to the scammer. Alexandra police say at least four cases have been opened.
A man pretending to be a police officer is targeting food sellers in Alexandra, placing large food orders and then demanding airtime vouchers as payment.
The scammer calls himself Captain Mabuwa and claims to work at Alexandra SAPS. He contacts food businesses and places large orders for delivery to the station.
After the order is placed, he calls again and tells vendors to send him an airtime voucher so he can process payment.
Tumelo Masite, who owns Rose’s Kitchen at Heritage Site in 7 Avenue, said the man ordered R700 worth of food.
“He called again and told us to send him a R500 airtime voucher so that he can process the payments,” Tumelo said.
They sent the voucher. But the man kept asking for more money. Tumelo drove to Alexandra police station to check.
When Tumelo arrived, he found other food sellers there, some with orders ready for delivery. “No one knew the said captain,” he said.
Some victims had already delivered food, hoping to be paid at the station. But there was no such officer and no payment was made.
The Scrolla team visited Alexandra SAPS on Sunday, 22 March. Officers confirmed that several people had come to the station with food deliveries linked to the same name.
Police said at least four cases have been opened. A police source said the suspect cannot be traced and no officer named Captain Mabuwa works at the station.
Authorities warned businesses not to send airtime or goods without confirming who they are dealing with.
Pictured above: Rose’s Kitchen, one of the Alexandra food businesses targeted by a man posing as a police captain.
Image source: Everson Luhanga
