A dramatic scene unfolded at the Pretoria Magistrates Court when a Free State woman confronted and apprehended a man she accused of defrauding her of R800,000 from her pension money.
As 60-year-old Thabo Chele stepped off the dock after appearing for a separate fraud case, the woman grabbed him by the arm and demanded her money, declaring, "I have been looking for you, and you thought I would never find you. I want my money."
Chele was appearing alongside his alleged son, Kingsley Chele, for a fraud case where they are accused of scamming victims out of more than R1.2 million. The two, along with three Home Affairs officials, are facing charges of fraud and corruption. The officials are alleged to have provided Chele, who is accused of posing as a doctor, with a fraudulent ID.
The woman had been searching for Thabo since April last year and traveled 150 kilometers from Daneysville to Pretoria after learning about his court appearance. She had last seen him and another accomplice in April when they convinced her to invest her pension money in a scheme, promising her a R5 million return. In December, she recognized a picture of Thabo in Sowetan after his initial arrest and immediately contacted investigator Colonel Masoding Simon Motolla, whose contact details were in the article.
"As I was sitting in court, I saw him [Thabo] coming in and getting into the witness box, and by that time, Motolla was not yet inside the court as he was stuck in traffic. A few minutes later, I saw him walking in. When the case was postponed, I saw Thabo getting out of the dock, and I grabbed him by my left hand and pulled him outside the court. That’s when I started making a noise that he defrauded me and I asked him for my money back. He just kept quiet. Police came and arrested him," the woman said.
Authorities allege that Thabo and Kingsley Chele targeted medical workers, persuading them to invest in a non-existent pharmacy business before vanishing with their money. The woman is believed to be their latest victim after being deceived into handing over R800,000 from her pension fund.
She recalled being introduced to Thabo by someone she knew as Moosa, who claimed Thabo was a herbalist. Together, they convinced her to invest in their business, knowing she was nearing retirement. "They knew I was about to retire but they convinced me to take an early retirement, cash out my pension, and give it to them, promising that my investment would grow into R5 million."
After withdrawing the money, she was invited to an ancestral ceremony in Vereeniging, where Thabo allegedly performed rituals to increase her investment. She claimed that after the ceremony, both men disappeared with her money.
