‘Sextortionists’ drive man to brink of suicide as social media becomes fertile hunting ground
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Mlungisi Ximba, 25, and Morgan Potgieter, 27, were arrested in Dobsonville, Soweto, after they ‘sextorted’ R25 000 from a Cape Town man and nearly drove him to suicide. Picture: Supplied.
Johannesburg - Respected international policing agencies said “sextortion” was the single most lucrative scam used by opportunistic criminals with basic technological skills.
So it comes as no surprise that social media platforms, especially dating websites, are the favourite hunting grounds for extortionists to make nefarious financial gains.
Sextortion is on the rise in South Africa, and more and more people falling prey to these ingenious scams.
A Cape Town man can now sleep a little easier after he was on the brink of suicide. The man shared nude pictures with someone he thought was a woman living in Gqeberha.
Lead investigator at Royal Investigations John Alexander said the man, 38, had engaged a certain female on www.adsafrica.co.za. They conversed and exchanged explicit nude pictures.
“Shortly afterwards, this seemingly ordinary connection took a sinister turn which almost pushed him to suicide. By the time we were assigned, the complainant had already paid R25 000 for his explicit pictures to be destroyed. He was emotionally drained, and it became apparent that he was contemplating suicide if this ordeal did not end soon,” said Alexander.
Investigators said their main objective was to identify the suspects and their whereabouts. Based on numerous similar investigations, they were keenly aware that the window of opportunity was slim to have the suspects arrested.
“We worked around the clock to gather all the intelligence, follow up all the leads, and ultimately arrested the perpetrators in Gauteng. We managed to identify the suspects in Dobsonville, Soweto.
“We arrested Morgan Potgieter, 27, and Mlungisi Ximba, 25, during a multidisciplinary operation led by Captain BT Adams and the Winelands crime intelligence cluster.
“A vehicle we observed at the crime scene on numerous occasions was searched, and further incriminating evidence was found and confiscated,” he added.
Meanwhile, the survivor of the scam is said to be in good spirits.
“He applauded the police for their decisive action, and confidence was restored in the calibre of detectives we still have and who are there to serve the public and uphold their oath of office.
“The suspects were tracked down during an intense intelligence-driven investigation following clever detective work, which we do not wish to divulge for obvious reasons. What I can say is that no one is untraceable in this day and age. We all leave passive digital footprints,” Alexander said.
Despite the many arrests made by the SAPS and private investigators, too many people had been duped out of millions.
“We have five cases where suspects were profiled and identified, and we are busy with discussions with crime intelligence clusters to assist in arresting the suspects.
“All five suspects are in Gauteng and Limpopo. We are also busy with seven new cases which are still in the early stages of investigation. We are confident that these suspects will be identified and arrested,” concluded Alexander.
Western Cape police spokesperson Captain FC van Wyk said Ximba and Potgieter had been remanded in custody and would make their next court appearance on March 24, where they would face extortion charges.
The SAPS cybercrime unit did not respond to questions about similar cases reported so far this year.