FREE STATE – A woman aged 31, was slapped with 30 years imprisonment by the Welkom Regional Court for defrauding a mine employee of his pension fund amounting to R955 300-00 under the pretense that it will multiply into millions of rands

A 54-year-old man was residing at one of the mine premises in Welkom when he met the woman and they fell in love with each other. The woman then introduced the man to her sister who was said to be a traditional healer.

The couple visited the traditional healer in Welkom where the man was told to buy a miracle box worth R2 000-00. After two days the man gave the traditional healer the money and he was shown how the miracle box works. The man was asked to put a coin inside the miracle box and the traditional healer then prayed for it. After opening the box there was a lot of money in it and the man was told it belongs to him.

The woman encouraged the man to retire from work so that he can make more money from the miracle box. During August 2020, the miner retired and in September 2020 he received some of the retirement money amounting to R233 000-00 and he gave it to the girlfriend to invest in the miracle box.

Later in October 2020, the man received his provident fund money worth R689 000-00 and he gave it to his girlfriend and the traditional healer to put inside the miracle box. On Wednesday, 4 November 2020 he gave them the rest of the remaining money in his bank account which was R12 300-00 and he was told to wait for instructions.

He was told to go back to his original home in our neighbouring countries to obtain soil from his yard and come back and put it with the money so that the ancestors can multiply the money into millions of rands.

He was given R1 000-00 when he told them he did not have money for transport. After a few days the man tried several times to contact the girlfriend and the traditional healer and even went to Tana Street in Doorn Welkom but they were nowhere to be found. He became suspicious and went to Welkom Police Station to register a case. A case of fraud was then registered and assigned to Detective Constable Neo Mothekhe of the Provincial Commercial Crime Investigations. Through his dedication and working around the clock the woman who is a foreign national was traced and arrested on the 23 January 2021.

Bail was successfully opposed and she remained in custody until she was found guilty as charged for the following charges Unfair Business Practice, Defeating the ends of justice, Fraud and Illegal Immigration.

The accused woman Sophia Najjia (31) was sentenced to 30 years in jail for the above mentioned charges by the Welkom Regional Court.

The Acting Provincial Commissioner of the Free State, Maj Gen Solly Lesia applauded the investigator for his hard work and dedication in this case to ensure that a thorough investigation was conducted which led to the arrest of this foreigner who was ultimately sentenced heavily.

Source: South African Police Service