Nigerian Man Remanded In Custody In South Africa After Multi-Million Romance Scam

Okori appeared before the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Monday, October 7, 2024, following his arrest last Thursday in Cape Town.

The arrest was carried out by South Africa’s Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, known as the Hawks, in collaboration with the City of Cape Town’s law enforcement and a private security firm.

According to Warrant Officer, Thatohatsi Mavimbela, the spokesperson for the Hawks, the victim met the accused online through Facebook, where Okori had assumed the identity of a white man named “Mark Hermanus.”

The two began communicating on WhatsApp, where “Hermanus” claimed that his son was seriously ill, eventually persuading the victim to send money for his son’s medical expenses.

The investigation revealed that Okori had orchestrated the scam to extract large sums of money under false pretenses.

The Hawks stated that the woman continued to give money to a man she knew as “Mark Hermanus,” with the total amount surpassing R3 million.

The man had promised to repay her once he settled his son’s medical bills, but he never did.

According to Mavimbela, “The case was reported to the Hawks’ serious commercial crime investigation unit, leading to the arrest of the suspect, identified as Gabriel Okori, a Nigerian national, in Cape Town on Thursday, October 3.”

Okori made his first court appearance at the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Monday, where the case was postponed until October 14.