Teachers scammed of millions of their pension payouts

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Two women in their late 50s, blinded by love saw themselves losing most of their pension fund money to a foreign national under false presences of investing their pension in a company.

The King Williams Town Regional Court heard that the 30 years old Tanzanian national, Lucious Charles Saba was in a romantic relationship with both women, aged 58 and 59 years. She met them on different occasions in 2017.

He sold the idea to them about his company YNM Investments which is based in Durban operated by Saba’s acquaintances, countrymen and other foreign nationals from other countries.

He managed to convince them to withdraw all their pension benefits and give them to him to invest. They both did so, and one withdrew R1,6 million and the other R900,000 and deposited the funds in the said company account.

The two victims only alerted the police after suspecting that they were scammed and failing to get in contact with him on several occasions. Saba was subsequently arrested in Durban, and the two women identified him in an identity parade and the prosecution successfully opposed bail, mainly because the Department of Home Affairs had no records of him being in the country. 

However, the NPA’s Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) only managed to recover an old Jaguar vehicle, valued at R200 000 after getting involved in the case.

To add on the case, it was also found that he was illegal in the country and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.