KEY POINTS
- Georgie Maureen Da Lanca reached the age of 42 when police authorities arrested her for manipulating people through a coltan-based fraud scheme within Gauteng.
- A R250,000 false transaction trace led to financial deposits in Da Lanca’s bank account.
- Tony Bradley received bail at R5,000 when the authorities arrested him in November 2022 and continued his freedom.
Through investigations by the Hawks also known as the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, the law enforcement agency took Georgie Maureen Da Lanca into custody for running a complex coltan fraud con which swindled multiple people throughout Gauteng.
Woman arrested for scam, key suspect in fraud syndicate
Lisa also referred to as Da Lanca underwent arrest after Sandton police station personnel investigated a reported case of fraud and money laundering in November 2022. A victim lost R250,000 after becoming a victim of a coltan deal scam that involved the co-conspirator Tony Bradley.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) possesses valuable metallic reserves of columbite-tantalite otherwise known as coltan which industry uses to manufacture mobile phones and computers together with electronic devices.
Financial trail exposes scam
The victim followed orders from the scammers with promises to obtain cross-border documentation and activate a transaction code although he was under a fraudulent scheme.
The FNB bank account that received the R250000 deposit transferred the funds into three different accounts while one of them belonged to Da Lanca. Second-level investigations showed that Da Lanca participated in coltan fraud activities which victimized several people throughout Johannesburg.
Co-accused and pending arrests
Woman arrested for scam, Da Lanca presented herself at the Johannesburg Specialized Commercial Crime Court located at Palm Ridge on Wednesday. The scheduled next appearance date for this case is March 19 to consider bail applications formally.
Tony Bradley joined her in custody by entering an arrest in November 2022 but obtained R5000 bail afterward. The authorities are actively working to execute three existing arrest warrants against members of the crime syndicate.
The Hawks force up their efforts against financial fraud operations
Major General Ebrahim Kadwa the head of Hawks in Gauteng praised the 419 Task Team because of their dedicated work that led to the capture of the criminal network.
As Major General Ebrahim Kadwa expressed the Hawks maintain a fierce dedication to break down criminal networks while protecting fraud victims from harm.
The 419 Task Team plays an essential role in studying luxury romance schemes which have resulted in millions of rand lost by numerous victims.
Throughout last year IOL has verified numerous reports about romance fraud victims that included pension age recipients. Current victims of financial theft have started uniting to pursue justice while attempting to retrieve their lost money.
