A Congolese national who claimed to have a machine that printed money found himself in handcuffs – but not before fleecing a Durban man out of over R30‚000 for a get-rich-quick scam.
Kingo Ngbanda Koto is alleged to have tricked his naïve victim into believing that he had a device which could make legitimate bank notes from counterfeit ones.
But it was Koto’s request for R230‚000 to buy airtime that had alarm bells ringing.
Hawks spokesman Captain Simphiwe Mhlongo said that on August 11‚ Koto allegedly told his victim that a flight was on its way from the DRC to Durban with electronic equipment and money on board.
“He informed the victim that he needed R5‚000 to pay customs officials and the victim paid him. Two days later he contacted the victim again [and] told him he needed R26‚000 more to release the package from customs. The victim paid him‚” he said.
“At a subsequent liaison‚ Koto had a box containing a gadget‚ which plugged into an electrical socket and fed what appeared to be fake bank notes. These were turned into what seemed like real banknotes amounting to approximately R1‚700‚” Mhlongo added.
“He informed the victim that he can make more genuine money by converting the fake notes but he needed R230‚000 more for airtime. The victim then contacted the police for assistance and Koto was arrested.”
Koto appeared in the Durban Commercial Crimes Court on Wednesday and was remanded in custody.
The Hawks have urged anyone who has fallen victim to this crime to contact Captain Ajith Jaganath on 071 481 2631.
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