Fortune appeared before the Palm Ridge Court on Monday, October 7, alongside her co-accused, Zizipho Makela, 32, in connection with charges of fraud and money laundering related to an elaborate romance scam. According to Captain Lloyd Ramovha, spokesperson for the Hawks, the scam was first reported at the Norwood police station in June 2019.
The victim, who remains unnamed, met a person posing as “Allen Graig” on Facebook, and the two quickly developed an online relationship. As the relationship moved to WhatsApp, the scammer, Graig, convinced the victim to transfer money into various bank accounts.
One of those accounts belonged to Fortune, who allegedly received R70,000 in three separate transactions. Makela is accused of receiving R580,000 across seven transactions, paid into her First National Bank (FNB) account. In total, the victim was scammed out of R650,000 before realizing the deception and reporting it to authorities, leading to an investigation by the Hawks.
Both Fortune and Makela were granted bail, with Fortune released on R2,000 and Makela on R3,000. The case has been postponed to January 24.
Brigadier Phumeza Klaas, Acting Head of the Hawks in Gauteng, issued a stern warning following the arrests, emphasizing the dangers of romance scams. “We urge all South African citizens to exercise caution when engaging in online relationships and to report any suspicious activities to the authorities,” she said.