By A Correspondent- A 58 year old man from the Killarney suburb in Bulawayo allegedly lost $567 500 to a fake Silo Belmont distribution manager who had promised to sell him rice and mealie at a discount.
Bulawayo police spokesperson Inspector Abednico Ncube confirmed the incident and said the complainant has not recovered anything yet.
It is alleged that the accused, Bothwell Nyabani, who is on the run, called his victim on July 29 and told him to take advantage of the “special” offer and order in bulk mealie-meal at a reduced price of $350 per 10kg and $85-00 for 2kg rice.
Said Inspector Ncube:
Police in Bulawayo are investigating a case of fraud where the complainant was defrauded of $567 500 and nothing was recovered. The accused person is a male adult only known as Bothwell Nyabani who claimed to be a distribution manager from Silo Belmont, Bulawayo.
On 29 July 2021, at around 09 AM the complainant received a call on his mobile number from the accused person informing the complainant that his company, Silo Belmont was running a sales promotion for mealie-meal and rice.
Insp Ncube said the complainant was convinced and agreed to buy 10 tonnes of mealie-meal and five tonnes of rice for a total amount of $567 500.00 which was to be paid through a bank transfer to a CABS account provided by the accused person.
The complainant sent the driver to collect the order from Silo Belmont but the accused person phoned the driver whilst he was on his way informing him that the order was not yet ready.
After trying in vain, on numerous, to collect his order from Nyabani, the complainant became suspicious and proceeded to Silo Belmont where he was told that the company does not have such a worker by the name of Bothwell Nyabani.
He reported the matter to the police who are now handling the case.
Inspector Ncube urged members of the public to be cautious when dealing with such proclaimed company managers as they risk being duped of their hard-earned cash.
He emphasized the importance of insisting on having landlines to call and verify or visit the place, if possible, for due diligence.
-statemedia