BELLVILLE, SOUTH AFRICA — Two men, aged 26 and 22, appeared before the Bellville Magistrate’s Court on Thursday following their arrests by the Hawks’ specialised 419 Scam Task Team in Mfuleni and Strand, Western Cape.
Their arrests are linked to a high-profile romance scam involving a fake online persona, “Mark Hermanus,” who defrauded a woman of over R3.4 million after building trust over Facebook and WhatsApp.
According to Hawks spokesperson Colonel Katlego Mogale, the scam began when the suspect claimed his son was ill, convincing the woman to “loan” him various amounts of money. She eventually transferred more than R3.4 million to the scammer, expecting to be repaid once the supposed medical bills were covered — a promise that was never fulfilled.
The money was reportedly redistributed to accomplices, several of whom have already been arrested. This includes:
Gabriel Okoi (40), arrested in October 2024 in Gordon’s Bay;
Justice Motsamai Khanyapa, arrested in March 2025 in Orange Farm, Johannesburg;
Thabo Derrick Mnguni, arrested on June 23, 2025.
All three have appeared before the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court, with some released on bail.
The latest suspects are facing charges of fraud and money laundering, and further arrests are expected as the Hawks continue dismantling the syndicate.
The victim, whose identity is protected, is one of many South Africans who have fallen prey to romance scams — a trend heavily reported in the IOL Scammed series. Victims, often manipulated emotionally, have lost pensions, savings, and bank loans to elaborate schemes posing as online relationships.
In a related case, two foreign nationals, Serage Martin Lubenga (28) and Rhoda Mirembe (33), were sentenced in Polokwane to 20 years in prison each for defrauding another South African woman of R650,000.
