A North West based woman, aged 64, is languishing in abject poverty and demanding answers from First National Bank (FNB) after scammers allegedly transferred her R2 million pension without her knowledge.
Speaking to IOL, Keneilwe (not her real name but her full details have been given to FNB) said when she resigned after working as a professional nurse for more than three decades, she hoped that she would invest some of her money into a transport business.
At the time of her resignation, the mother of four told IOL that she was involved in a romantic relationship with a man in his 40s, who had introduced himself as “Prince Jomo Kenyatta” – insisting that he was named after Jomo Kenyatta the first president of independent Kenya.
Since last year, IOL has been running the scammed series where several women and men have lost their hard-earned money including pensions and bank loans through romance scams. The victims have regrouped and are knocking on different doors, demanding answers.
Part of the victims’ complaints include allegations against FNB, who the victims insist was the bank preferred by the scammers. Many of the scammed victims did not have FNB accounts, but during the complicated scams, they were enticed by the scammers to open and transact using FNB.
Romance scams, also referred to as dating scams or love scams are a common fraudulent scheme where a person, especially women, are met by strangers who propose love to them. In the many cases investigated by IOL, the scammers who have since vanished, were foreign nationals who avowed love to the employed women in different cities across South Africa.
As the love blossoms, with regular promises of fancy wedding ceremonies and blissful, lifelong marriages, the unsuspecting women are persuaded to either resign or take out bank loans so that the money would be invested into the “lovebirds” business venture to support their upcoming family.
In the IOL series, the scammed women and men have joined hands and are speaking out against the rampant romance scams targeting unsuspecting, working women particularly State employees. The targeted women who are often single mothers and breadwinners in their households, are left destitute, emotionally traumatised, with some women reportedly committed suicide after being scammed.
Other women have disappeared from communities leaving no trace, after it became apparent that the fairytale love relationships were merely scams. The scam becomes apparent when the scammers vanish from the scene unexpectedly.
Stories of the many victims, more than 20 of them, differ from cases to case but the common thread in the majority of the cases is how the scammers insisted, as part of the scams, that the victims open bank accounts at FNB.
In the case of Keneliwe, the North West-based woman told IOL of a harrowing story where her pension of more than R2.6 million was in her bank account for around four days, before R2 million vanished.
“I had never been a client of FNB, but when my pension was being processed, the people from GEPF (Government Employees Pension Fund) kept saying they were having a problem with my bank account at Nedbank. On the other hand, Prince (the boyfriend) advised me to open an account with FNB. I wanted to open an account with ABSA, but he insisted on FNB,” she narrated.
“I suspect he had inside information on me because on the day that my pension was paid into the FNB account, he knew before me. But he had no access to my phone. He was certain that I have been paid.
“I was scammed R2 million at FNB on August 31, 2022. I was not even present when the fraudulent transaction happened. I do not know how the money was transferred from my bank account. FNB is not explaining. FNB said they will assign a private investigator but till now the PI never consulted with me,” Keneilwe told IOL.
A case of fraud was opened with the South African Police Service, but the boyfriend has been elusive.
Keneilwe said last year, FNB contacted her and told her that the bank would send her the outcome of their internal investigation, but nothing happened after that.
She believes Prince had something to do with the scam because she said when she confronted him about her missing money, he said the “ancestors” had taken it.
"The biggest mistake I did was to agree to open the FNB account. That is where the scam was sealed. I have been asking FNB for answers, but I get nothing. Two of my children have since passed on and I am looking after their three orphaned children. I have nothing to feed the children, they have not paid school fees in more than a year," she lamented in an interview with IOL.
"My two sons were supposed to be in university. But with no money, they dropped out and I see now that they resort to smoking. I blame myself every day. Municipal services can be cut off at my house any day now. I am suffering, simply because FNB failed to protect me as their new client. How come such a large amount of money was transferred when I was not there as the owner of the bank account? FNB has really let me down."
In December, IOL submitted a dossier to FNB containing the details of several customers, including Keneilwe, who were scammed. The victims insist that the bank did not protect them during physical visits to FNB branches, or online.
Responding to the IOL query, Sizwekazi Mdingi, FNB head of public relations and external communications said the bank takes all fraud cases seriously and undertakes to investigate each case thoroughly in line with its zero-tolerance approach to criminality.
“In addition to a dedicated proficient fraud team, FNB has a layered approach to protecting clients from fraud and regularly reviews its measures to detect and prevent fraud against its customers. As a part of our fraud awareness education, we advise clients to consult with a reputable and registered financial advisor before accepting investment advice from family, colleagues, or friends,” said Mdingi.
“We urge them to invest with companies that are registered with, and regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) as the FSCA requirements and laws are designed to protect investors. Various institutions including the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC) continuously urge the public to exercise extreme caution with regards to fraudulent investment schemes.
“We strongly encourage our customers to report incidents of fraud immediately when they arise, directly to FNB by calling 087 575 9444 or by visiting the security centre on the FNB App,” she said.
Mdingi said the bank does not want to discuss details of how Keneilwe lost her R2 million.
“While the bank is unable to comment on a specific customer case owing to client confidentiality, we can assure the victims that we will not hesitate to take action on evidence of criminality,” she concluded.