MANZINI – As the crackdown on financial crime continues, police have arrested a member of a syndicate in connection with swindling people over E1.4m through false tenders, ‘washa washa’ and the sale of precious stones.
Mlandvo Wiseman Mngometulu (40) of Siphofaneni in the Lubombo Region was arrested by a team of law enforcers from the Fraud Department, who are behind the cracking of the ‘facata’ scam. The officers are Detective Constable Bahle Ngwenya, Detective Constable Sikhumbuzo Dlamini, Detective Constable Sibongiseni Vilakati and Detective Constable Sihle Dlamini, who worked closely with their seniors from Hhohho Regional Headquarters.
The accused is facing 22 charges of theft by false pretences and Contravening Section 4 (1) (c) as read with Section 76 and 89 (1) (a) of the Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention) Act of 2011. The total amount linked to the charges is E1 426 111.40.
According to a source close to the matter, the accused, who was allegedly working with other members of the syndicate, sometimes used the names of His Majesty King Mswati III, the Queen Mother and other members of the royal family, when swindling unsuspecting members of the public, including businesspeople.
The highest amount an individual was defrauded is E515 596 and one of the victims is former Senator Ndileka Dlamini, who was reportedly swindled E22 806.94. This was after the accused informed the former senator that he had been told that he had been assigned by His Majesty King Mswati III to summon her regarding a job opportunity that to cater for orphans. When unpacking the modus operandi, the source alleged the accused and his supposed group would identify a target and one of them called as if he were a prince and offer the targeted individual a chance to partner with investors in some business or promise them a tender.
According to the source, the one person posing as a prince, would invite the target to a meeting at Lozitha Palace. However, when they had to meet, he would claim that he was attending a critical meeting and inform the target that he would send someone to meet him on his behalf.
Thereafter, he said the individual would meet the target and take him to one of the hotels around the country to meet the said business partner – yet that individual is a member of the syndicate. He said as they went through the documents of the business idea or contract for the tender, the bogus prince would call and direct them to sign the contracts quickly and take his precious stones or dirty money to a certain client. Again, he said that client would also be a member of the syndicate.
At that time, the source said the story changed from a business partnership or tender to selling the supposed precious stones or cleaning the dirty money as they would go with their target to meet the ‘client’.
“Upon meeting the ‘client’, with documents that stipulate that the precious stones are sold for about E700 000, they would convince their target that indeed a deal was happening,” he said.
He also stated that the ‘prince’ would call and tell the target to give his man the money, say around E150 000, as they need to sort something urgently and promise to pay him back the following day after being paid for the precious stones.
He alleged that some of the precious stones were given to the target and later on, he would be approached by other members of the syndicate who posed as police officers who had come to arrest him for the minerals.
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