‘Great bargain’ for a car advertised on Facebook turns into a nightmare

Two kidnapped, R77k cleaned out of bank account

What was meant to be a great bargain for a car advertised on Facebook Marketplace turned into a one-hour ordeal for a Gauteng man who watched his kidnappers cleaning out his bank account, stealing R77,000. 

The victim, 39, from Olievenhoutbosch in Centurion, responded to an advert on Facebook on Thursday last week and the following day he found himself locked in a car boot in Winterveldt, north of Pretoria, and witnessed his kidnappers withdrawing money from his bank account and using cash-send to disburse the funds to various shops and ATM for withdrawal. 

The traumatised man, who asked not to be named, told Sowetan yesterday that his car had been involved in an accident on October 11, which resulted in it being written off and was due to be paid R75,000 by an insurer to buy another vehicle. 

The man said he was eager to replace his Audi A4, and when he saw a similar vehicle on Facebook going for R54,000, he knew he had to get it.

He then contacted the seller, who tried to convince him to meet with him in Mabopane the same day to view the vehicle.

"He said he wouldn't be home but his wife and child will be expecting me. I told him I would come the next day [Friday]," he explained.

After he received his car insurance payout on Friday, he contacted the seller and arranged to meet during lunchtime.

The man said what convinced him that the advert was not a scam was when the seller told him a sob story that he had lost his brother and needed the cash to bury him.

"I also felt safe to go there because he mentioned that I would find his wife and child at home," he said.

He drove to Mabopane with his cousin and on their arrival the seller linked them up with someone else who would take them to another area to view the vehicle. They drove to a place with RDP houses, and when he questioned where the vehicle was, the buyer's friend said: "Don't worry, the [seller] will be here."

A few minutes later, three gunmen ambushed them and instructed them to lie on the ground. They then took their cellphones.

"They forced me into the boot while my cousin was sitting in the backseat. They drove with us for a while and said I should open my banking apps from my phone. I have Standard Bank and a Capitec Bank apps.

Members responded swiftly to the complaint at a location where the suspects were holding the victim hostage and two male victims were found and rescued unharmed.TMPD spokesperson Isaac Mahamba

"I had R75,000 in my Standard Bank and R2,500 in my Capitec account. They transferred the R75,000 into my Capitec account. I heard them mentioning two people's accounts and then they also did cash-send and took my bank card to withdraw at the ATM until all the money was gone. I had a daily limit but that did not matter because they had access to the banking app and they used it to increase the limit," he explained. 

He said their ordeal lasted for just over an hour before they were rescued by officers from the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD).  

According to the TMPD, they received a tip-off from a resident about a suspicious activity.

"From the information, it was discovered that the act was the hijacking and kidnapping of two victims," said spokesperson Isaac Mahamba.

Mahamba confirmed that the men were ambushed after falling for a Facebook scam and R77,000 was transferred to an unknown account.  

"Members responded swiftly to the complaint at a location where the suspects were holding the victim hostage and two male victims were found and rescued unharmed," he said. 

He said three suspects were arrested and charged with hijacking, kidnapping, and extortion.

TMPD has urged the public to be cautious and verify the information when dealing with social media adverts. 

"I have learned the hard way and this whole experience has traumatised me. Now I have nothing, the money is gone," said the man. 

"I normally buy from the Facebook market because there are a lot of things that you can get from that platform. I would buy gadgets at a reasonable price, and you never know when something is a scam," he said.  

Such scam are becoming common in Winterveldt. 

In May this year, police arrested more than 20 people who are believed to be part of two gangs linked to a criminal network behind a spike in robberies targeting unsuspecting customers making purchases on Facebook Market.

In February, a Mpumalanga businessman was kidnapped and allegedly robbed of R300,000 in a Facebook Marketplace scam when he tried to buy a plant machine. 

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