Private investigator says there are telling signs of social media scams
This comes after two Eastern Cape brothers were lured to their deaths after responding to a Facebook Marketplace advert on Saturday.
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JOHANNESBURG - Private investigator and owner of IRS Forensics Chad Thomas says there are a few telling signs for social media scams.
This comes after two Eastern Cape brothers were lured to their deaths after responding to a Facebook Marketplace advert on Saturday.
READ: 2 EC brothers shot dead after responding to Facebook Marketplace advert
Aaron and Kyle Alberts were robbed and murdered in Motherwell, just outside Gqeberha, by two armed men.
Thomas says the cardinal rule is to never pay money upfront.
"Don't pay money upfront. You’re going to find that criminals want to try to pressure you into a quick sale. They advertise something at a ridiculously low price and they tell you that, understandably, there are other people who are interested in the product, and they want a deposit. Don’t pay that deposit."
He says the place you intend to meet to conduct the business deal is just as important.
"If they want you to come out and meet with them, don’t go to the location of their choice. Come up with a couple of options but obviously, always a public place, a police station, a filling station or a well-lit parking lot in a shopping centre that has CCTV cameras, etcetera."