Tourists and visitors to Cape Town's Atlantic Seaboard have been warned of fraudsters claiming they must pay for a permit to enter a street or public area and then using credit card cloning devices to scam them.
The alarm was raised last week when a German tourist was targeted in Green Point.
But thanks to quick-thinking members of the Green Point Ratepayers and Residents Association, he was spared from being conned.
According to resident Peter Flentov, the group of suspects pretended to be officials and instructed him to pay for a permit to enter the area while trying to scam him with a credit card device.
“Shortly after 8:30am, Jody Botha and James Johnson, two members of the Green Point Ratepayers and Residents Association’s CUT SafeStreet Collective gardening and cleaning team, saw a lone individual near the Green Point A-Track who appeared to be in some sort of trouble,” he said.
“The man, who turned out to be a German tourist, was surrounded by a number of men dressed to look official.
“They were in the process of scamming him, they had convinced him that he needed to pay for a permit to enter the area.
"Botha and Johnson intervened and the men fled in two cars, taking his cards but leaving one scamming device behind.
“Law Enforcement and SAPS were called and the man was advised to cancel his cards.
"Riedoewaan Galant, the SafeStreet Collective’s supervisor, assisted the victim in getting back to his hotel so that he could catch his flight home.
“A huge 'thank you' to Botha and Johnson for being alert and stepping up when needed, and a reminder to visitors that you do not need a permit or ticket to walk on any street in Cape Town.”
Liz Knight of the residents association said they were aware of the syndicate and cautioned people to not fall prey.
She said Jacques Weber of the Atlantic Seaboard Response Group also issued a warning.
“We urge all residents and visitors to Cape Town to be vigilant against a scam targeting tourists,” said Weber.
“Scammers, posing as officials or security personnel, approach unsuspecting individuals and claim they need a special permit to enter or walk on certain streets or public areas.
“They then direct the victim to a device mounted on a wall or pole, where they are asked to 'swipe' their credit card to process the so-called permit.
“This is a scam.
“The device is being used to clone credit card information.
“While arrests have been made for such previously there are a number of groups conducting such crimes.”
Cape Argus