A group of five alleged fraudsters which included Billy Ndlovu (54), Clarance Makhubela (34) and Lawrence Munyai (33) were arrested by members of Delmas Crime Prevention for theft of motor vehicles on Tuesday, 14 July 2020.
It is alleged that the suspects led by Ndlovu, targeted vehicle owners who were in arrears with their car finance loan instalments and pretended to be the bank officials tasked to repossess the vehicles.
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The matter was reported to the police when one of the victims’ vehicle was repossessed by the suspect after she had made payment arrangements with the bank.
She approached the bank again complaining about their actions and learned that she was a victim of crime.
A sting operation was conducted on Tuesday, 14 July 2020, following the information received about the suspects who were allegedly selling vehicles at a lower than market value.
The suspects were found in possession of a Toyota Hilux and a Fortuner which were repossessed from one of the victims in Acornhoek.
They appeared before the Delmas Magistrate Court on Thursday where Makhubela and Munyai were granted R 5 000 bail each.
The case against the two other suspects was withdrawn.
The middleman, Ndlovu, was remanded in custody and the case is postponed to 23 July 2020.
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The matter has since been referred to the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation team in Mpumalanga to continue with the probe the matter further.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation in Mpumalanga is appealing to all those whom their vehicles were recently repossessed to contact their financial institutions for confirmation and if necessary to open a case at nearest police stations or contact the investigating officer Warrant Officer Makgamatha on 082 304 0052 or contact the police Crime Stop number 0860010111 or use MySAPS App.
