The provincial commercial crimes unit has arrested four suspects, two of them City of Cape Town officials, in connection with the alleged fraudulent housing scheme causing victims to lose R900 000.
The arrests of the suspects on Wednesday came as a result of an intensive fraud investigation in connection with a housing development in Mfuleni.
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Detectives from the unit were assigned after the City of Cape Town made new plots in the area available to qualifying beneficiaries for a housing development in Extension 2 during last year.
Police spokesperson Colonel André Traut said that the two City of Cape Town officials, aged 51 and 55, collaborated with two other officials to illegally market these plots, and with their alleged criminal scheme, they persuaded 11 prospective buyers into depositing large sums of money into a bank account which the two officials shared.
It is alleged that the two city officials approached the other two suspects, asking if they knew anyone wanting to buy plots directly from them.
‘This fraudulent scheme resulted in a financial loss of R900 000 suffered by the victims for real estate that they never received ownership of,’ said Traut.
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Human settlements MMC Carl Prophaim said one official subsequently resigned and the other was in the process of being suspended, reported TimesLive.
‘My heart breaks for the victims. City projects will never require prospective beneficiaries to pay money to be on a list or to receive a property,’ said Prophaim.
‘This serves as a warning to all city employees, public representatives and private individuals involved in our projects: we will stop at nothing to root out fraud and corruption and ensure that public money and vulnerable individuals are protected,’ added Prophaim.
The two officials now face 11 charges of fraud in the Blue Downs Magistrates’ Court, alongside the two other suspects – aged 28 and 36.
Traut added that the investigation is still ongoing and more arrests could be made as investigations unfold.
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