The case of Yiga Siraje Lubega, the alleged romance scammer, and his co-accused, “prophetess” Rhoda Betsey Mirembe, is set to return to the Polokwane Specialised Commercial Crimes Court next week. The duo, who were arrested in December 2023 for defrauding a Limpopo woman out of a staggering R650 000, have been in custody since their arrest.
Their alleged modus operandi was as slick as it was cruel. Lubega, a 27-year-old, charmed his way into the heart of a 39-year-old Limpopo woman, driving a flashy white Mercedes-Benz. The Hawks, South Africa's elite crime-fighting unit, revealed that the pair's relationship blossomed quickly, with Lubega swiftly exploiting the woman's vulnerability.
"While enjoying the new love, the victim (the Limpopo woman) told the suspect (Lubega) about her personal problems," said the late Lieutenant Colonel Matimba Maluleke, Hawks spokesperson, in a statement last year. "The suspect promised to hook her up with a spiritual healer, the ‘prophetess’, who was going to cast away all her problems."
Enter Mirembe, the "prophetess" who claimed to have the power to solve the woman's problems. The woman was introduced to Mirembe, who arrived in a BMW X6, carrying a bag filled with R4 million in cash. The woman was told that the money was hers, inherited from her ancestors, but she had to pay a 10% "fee" to claim it.
Desperate to access the supposed inheritance, the woman took a loan of R650 000 and handed it over to Mirembe. However, the woman's dreams of newfound wealth quickly turned into a nightmare. Lubega and Mirembe vanished, leaving the woman with nothing but a mountain of debt and a broken heart.
The woman's ordeal didn't end there. She received a call from a property rental agent in Polokwane, enquiring about a luxury house she allegedly rented at Woodhill Estate. The woman was shocked, as she had never rented such a property. It turned out that her identity had been fraudulently used in the transaction.
The Hawks, alerted to the scam, visited the address at Woodhill Estate and found the white Mercedes-Benz and the BMW X6 parked in the garage. Although no one was found inside the house, the vehicles were seized as they were linked to the suspects.
The Hawks tracked Lubega and Mirembe to Potchefstroom, North West, where they were eventually apprehended.
This case is not an isolated incident. IOL has been running a series on romance scams, highlighting the devastating impact these scams have on vulnerable women across South Africa. Many women, often the breadwinners in their households, are left destitute after falling victim to these scams. Some have even taken their own lives after being scammed.
