PARKS PROPERTY ADVICE


Home buyers being hit by fraudulent IDs


Identity fraud has started to affect property owners. Properties are being sold to unsuspecting buyers without the real owners knowing about it. There have been eight instances recently where properties have been sold, and in some the transfer had gone through the Deeds Office, without the knowledge of the true landowners. Police said ID fraud was very common. Crime syndicates were colluding with Department of Home Affairs employees to obtain lost ID documents. They replace the owner’s picture with another one and use the “doctored” document to commit fraud. Department of Home Affairs spokesman, Ronnie Mamoepa, said while he could not provide exact figures relating to ID fraud, the department was doing everything possible to prevent it. 'Now with the smart card ID we are confident that ID fraud will be a thing of the past,' he said.

Daily News, 28 May 2014