Businessman relates con job ordeal

An expatriate businessman based in Abu Dhabi's Mussafah industrial area has become the country's first known victim to the widely circulated get-rich letters, faxes and emails from Africa.

K.B., a Pakistani businessman, has lost more than $10,000 in such a scam. He and his business partners were attracted to visit Durban in South Africa following an offer from a conman of 10 per cent on $15.5 million for helping him secure the amount deposited in a private security company.

It was the first time an actual victim in the UAE has come forward to narrate how he was lured and cheated by the greed of becoming richer overnight. They have reported the matter with South African Embassy in Abu Dhabi to help recover the money lost in the scam.

The embassy has received a full report on the scam and will refer the matter to Durban authorities.

According to A.K, a close relative of the businessman, it was like a gold rush for the family when they received the first fax from the conman in South Africa.

He said: "It was an attractive offer, and could not be turned down by him (K.B.) and some other family members. The reasons why he is offering the commission, and why he needed our help for the money transfer was very well explained in the fax."

The conman, claiming to be a Zimbabwean refugee in Durban, identifying himself Benjamin Osongo, wrote to his victims that his late father had deposited $15.5 million with a security company and needed a foreign partner to transfer it.

According to A.K., the correspondence between his uncle and Osongo went very well with a convincing note, and finally they decided to visit South Africa and strike the deal. All the preparations were made to visit South Africa to meet their 'new business partner' and earn a commission of 10 per cent on $15.5 million.

During the trip to South Africa, A.K. accompanied his uncle to help him in his business deal with Osongo.

"I felt something fishy during our dealings with Osongo and his other partners. We met several people, including two women he referred as his mother and wife, and some of the people referred as bankers and their lawyer."

K.B. opened a non-resident account with a local bank in Durban to help him transfer the amount to his account in Abu Dhabi. To finalise the deal and transfer the money, they paid $3,000 in cash to the security firm called M/s Stallion Security Company (Pvt.) Limited.

The money was contained in a huge trunk and deposited to the so-called firm as valuables. As per the negotiations, the trunk was supposed to be delivered to the Pakistani businessman in his hotel room, but the plan was changed for some unknown reasons.

A.K. said: "The trunk was sent to Osongo's villa, where we were invited to examine the money. We were shocked to see the money in defaced American dollar bills. The trunk was sealed with the U.S. Federal Reserve marks. It also contained a bottle of chemical in liquid form to wash the defaced bills.

"We were asked to pick some of the defaced dollars. Osongo then washed the selected dollars with the chemical, and the dollars became clean. We shopped with the same money which turned out to be genuine."

Osongo later diluted the chemical with some liquid to destroy it. He told the Pakistani businessman more chemicals will be available to clean all the bills before they are deposited in his non-resident bank account.

Meanwhile the plan was further changed. It required the money to be transferred to the UAE via another, online offshore bank in London.

An online account was opened with the so-called London-based Commercial Trust, which turned out to be a ghost bank. The so-called bank asked for fulfiling procedures, requiring further expenses met by the victims.

The procedures, including insurance and counter insurance policies, required more than $40,000 to finalise the deal for transferring money. At this point A.K. and his uncle realised it was all fake and abandoned their efforts of getting richer, and rather started investigating the entire drama.

The family has warned and advised all the residents of the country never to fall prey to such scams. "We have lost a lot of money in paying fees and charges in addition to our stay and travel expenses. We were lucky to realise the scam earlier and abandoned the plan, else we could have lost more than $50,000 if continued looking forward to become richer," he said.

How the get-rich-quick scheme unravelled
* A man, identifying himself as Benjamin Osongo from Durban, wrote to his victims that his late father had deposited $15.5 million with a security company and needed a foreign partner to transfer the money.

* K.B., an Abu Dhabi-based businessman, was convinced about the veracity of Osongo's story. He and his relative A.K. decide to visit South Africa and strike the deal.

* K.B. opens a non-resident account with a Durban bank to help transfer the amount to his account in Abu Dhabi. To finalise the deal and transfer the money, they paid $3,000 to a security firm.

* The money, in defaced bills, was to be delivered to KBC in his hotel room, but the plan was changed and sent to Osongo's villa.

* The money was to be deposited in KB's non-resident bank account but the plan was changed. The new plan required the money to be transferred to the UAE via another, online offshore bank in London.

* An online account was opened with the so-called London-based Commercial Trust, which turned out to be a ghost bank. The procedures, including insurance and counter insurance policies, required more than $40,000 to finalise the deal for transferring money.

* At this juncture A.K. and K.B. realised it was all fake and abandoned their efforts to get richer.