[imagesource:sundaytimes]

Extortionists posing as Eskom employees were out in full force in Simon’s Town recently, targeting a local farmer and his employees with a ruse about a problematic prepaid electricity box.

Daily Maverick reported that a man posing as an Eskom employee claimed a ticket had been issued to disconnect power at Rocklands Farm in the small seaside town.

The owner of the farm, Paul Rowe, was suddenly bombarded by a flurry of urgent messages on Monday, 5 August from a man claiming to be an Eskom official with the name ‘Davis Mfundo’.

Mfundo gravely informed Rowe that a ticket had been issued to cut off the farm’s power supply, citing tampering with the prepaid electricity box. To avert this impending blackout, he demanded an urgent payment of R5,000.

The man relentlessly pressured Rowe for the money, threatening to sever the electricity if the payment wasn’t made immediately.

Herein lies a big lesson in avoiding scammers; they create a false sense of urgency so that you don’t have time to think about what you might be getting yourself into, and before you know it, your money is gone.

“I can stop the team [Mfundo’s crew] because they are going with three bakkies, there are six of them… I can stop the system and you will receive the reference number,” Mfundo said in one of the WhatsApp voice notes (in Daily Maverick’s possession) sent to coerce Rowe, who was not at the farm at the time, to pay up to avoid disconnection.

Simon’s Town is not even under Eskom’s jurisdiction, serviced instead by the City of Cape Town.

Standing his ground, Rowe firmly told Mfundo that all his electricity accounts were up to date. He demanded proof of the claim, Mfundo’s Eskom credentials, and a copy of the notice. Rowe warned that if the demands persisted, he would press charges for attempted bribery or extortion. The scammers appear to have backed off pretty quickly:

When Daily Maverick contacted the number used to message Rowe, a man who identified himself as Mfundo denied any involvement, claiming he neither worked for Eskom nor had any knowledge of the situation. He also mentioned receiving similar calls and had considered changing his number.

The power utility company also confirmed there is no employee by the name of Davis Mfundo.

At first, Rocklands farm manager Pierre van der Spuy thought the call might be legit. But it didn’t take long for him to realise it was a full-on extortion attempt.

“He said the electricity would be cut off if we didn’t pay R5,000. I asked if we could pay in cash, but he insisted on e-wallet, which raised red flags,” Van der Spuy said. He said the farm had experienced electrical issues recently, making them more vulnerable to such scams.

The municipality had sent out warnings in April to residents about electricity scammers who pretended to be employed by the city to “scan meters” or “check plugs”. One resident tells a story of these scammers pitching up to her home looking rather legitimate with reflective jackets and a ‘permit’ attached, along with a clipboard in hand, only to try and steal her gold earrings when she sussed them out and asked them to leave.

Xanthea Limberg, the city’s Mayco member for energy, urged residents to be vigilant and reminded them that legitimate city workers carried proper identification and a work order specific to their task.

“We remind residents that the city will make an appointment with them before visiting their home,” she said. “We urge our residents to be aware of these scammers and take the necessary steps to ensure all visitors to their home are legitimate city employees or contractors.”

Residents are further advised to verify the credentials of anyone claiming to be a City or Eskom official and to report any suspicious activity.

[source:dailymaverick]