Four of the six men arrested by police at their offices for their alleged part in a healer scam. Searching the curtained 'consultation' room for evidence is Shaieen Suliman of Magma Security, who assisted the police with their investigation. Picture: Shan Pillay Four of the six men arrested by police at their offices for their alleged part in a healer scam. Searching the curtained 'consultation' room for evidence is Shaieen Suliman of Magma Security, who assisted the police with their investigation. Picture: Shan Pillay
Police have arrested six Ugandan nationals alleged to be part of a a bogus faith healer syndicate who have conned their victims out of thousands of rand.
The suspects were expected to appear in the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate’s court on Thursday on charges of theft.
Officers of the Plessislaer Crime Intelligence Project and Pietermaritzburg detectives, assisted by Magma Security, made the arrests after a complaint from an alleged victim.
The six, who are believed to be in the country illegally, are alleged to have set up plush, offices in the Pietermaritzburg CBD to create an aura of respectability.
One of their alleged victims, who spoke to the Daily News on condition of anonymity, told how he had been conned out of R50 000, his life savings.
The man said his young son was continually ill and doctors seemed unable to cure him.
So when he spotted an advert in a local paper for a faith healer in Perk’s Arcade who promised to solve any problem, he resolved to go to the healer’s offices.
There a receptionist told him to return the following day with R100 for a consultation.
“When I went in for the consultation I was told to come in the next day with R2 300 and a tin of coffee.
“The following day I went in as told into a dark room.
“After a while the lights were switched on and I was asked to open the coffee tin…
“Shockingly I was shown a snake in the tin of coffee.”
The man was advised to return with a black rooster and a bull, to slaughter and do some rituals.
“I could not get a bull, but the man told me to deposit R6 000 into an account and he would buy the bull for me.”
A couple of days later the man said he returned to the healer’s offices to ask him about the bull.
“The man told me not to worry, he had sacrificed the bull in the sea. Two days later I was called back and was asked how old I was; I told the man I was 41.” The man was then advised to bring R41 000 cash and all his troubles would be over.
After paying over the money but finding no change in his son’s health, the man asked for his money back, but to no avail. He then contacted the police.
When police raided the offices and arrested the six, two women were there awaiting a meeting. They also agreed to speak to the Daily News, again on condition of anonymity.
One said she had also seen the advert in a local paper and sought help for her sick child.
This was after she had already consulted many doctors and “several backyard temples and was told that my child is possessed with black magic”.
After an initial consultation for R100, she was asked to return two days later.
“The following day I was called and told to come immediately and bring R1 500. I was told to bring a shirt of my son and was given eggs to put into the shirt and was told everything was going to be fine. There has been no improvement in the health of my son,” the woman said.
Police have appealed to people who might have suffered a similar fate to contact the investigating officer, Warrant Officer Clive van Wyk, at 082 555 4262.