Woman hospitalised after Ugandan man scams her of large sums of money

• Free State police are searching for alleged Ugandan romance scammer Junior Bashiru
• Two women lost nearly R900,000 collectively to Bashiru's fraudulent schemes
• Expert warns romance scams exploit emotional vulnerabilities and isolation tactics

BLOEMFONTEIN, FREE STATE— The Free State police announced they are searching for an alleged Ugandan romance scammer, Junior Bashiru, who is a person of interest in multiple fraud cases. They spoke after a Bloemfontein victim lost hundreds of thousands of rand to the suspect who has vanished completely.

According to TimesLIVE, spokesperson Sergeant Palesa Thabana said Bashiru is wanted in connection with two separate fraud cases involving two women who were defrauded of nearly R900,000. One victim, Lesego (not her real name), met the thirty-two-year-old suspect at a mall in Bloemfontein before entering a relationship where he requested massive financial assistance.

Police trace Junior Bashiru

Thabana said that members of the public with helpful information should contact Constable Neo Mothekhe or Crime Stop immediately to trace the suspect. The suspect allegedly convinced the victim to provide R10,000 for vehicle repairs and R300,000 for a school computer laboratory project.

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The victim secured extensive loans from her sister, a colleague, and local loan sharks, and even sold her personal vehicle to raise extra funds after a fraudulent bail demand. University of South Africa crime expert Mpho Matlala stated that romance scams are directly linked to psychological affirmations where fraudsters intentionally isolate targets who seek love.

Matlala added that maintaining complete privacy and avoiding family integration are serious red flags, advising the community to always perform background checks. The police confirmed the suspect travelled to Zeerust and Rustenburg before cutting off contact completely.

Ugandans arrested for running a scam

In a related article, Briefly News reported that the South African Police Service (SAPS) arrested three Ugandans for allegedly running a scam using spiritual practices as a front.

The men posed as prophets and used fake money and rats to run their scam. However, their scam was caught after the police raided a house in Penina Park, where they found that the men were also undocumented.

Source: Briefly News