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419 scam targets Winnie to lure victims

IT SEEMS not even her Struggle credentials can make Winnie Madikizela-Mandela immune to 419 scams.

In this case the scam uses Madikizela-Mandela's e-mail and claims that she has $45-million which she received as an "over inflated contract" that was awarded to her late former husband Nelson Mandela.

 

The writer of the letter created two Gmail accounts under Madikizela-Mandela's name and her name is wrongly spelt.

Her personal assistant, Zodwa Zwane, pointed out that Madikizela-Mandela didn't even have a Gmail account - from which the e-mail was sent - to start with. The e-mail further states that the funds are under an insurance company.

The e-mail says 10% of the money will go to an unspecified charity while 25% will go to anyone who assists her to move the money out of the country before the government discovers her secret stash and confiscates it.

The e-mail also tries to entice those who have good ideas on lucrative investments by promising to reward them by making them investment managers. The scam includes Madikizela-Mandela's personal details such as where she was born and her date of birth.

Socialite Terry Mokoena, who received the same e-mail, says he knew that it was a scam because MadikizelaMandela will never do such a thing.

Mokoena said he was worried that many people will be fooled by the e-mail because of the use of Madikizela-Mandela's name.

Madikizela-Mandela has since distanced herself from thee-mail.