Con artist scammed friends out of over R9-million by lying about having cancer

Friends are the family you choose, but sometimes you might think your friends have your best intentions at heart while they are actually busy stabbing you in the back.

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Such is the case with Sandra Robinson, a 48-year-old from Cape Town who really did her friends and other acquaintances dirty.

She might have even reached a new low with the lies she told her friends as she swindled them out of huge amounts of money.

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Sandra has been charged for her crimes and is set to stand trial in the Bellville specialised commercial crime court for the 50 charges of fraud she faces. She had allegedly committed a series of crimes between the years 2009 and 2015 as she enticed friends and other acquaintances into investing in her 'gift shop' and 'meat business'.

She had managed to get over R9-million from these victims and she did not mind pulling out all the stops in order to get what she wanted.

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Her business was called Nulogix, a meat business that bought its product in Namibia and then sold it to reputable stores, supermarkets, and old-age homes. She promised the victims 50% of the imaginary meat business's profits and even name-dropped one of South Africa's biggest billionaires, Mr Johann Rupert, to help convince them to invest. Apparently, Rupert would be paying all taxes.

If that didn't do the job she would promise them a monthly salary of R150,000, since Nulogix made a turnover of R38-million per month. Spar was also dragged into the case as she claimed that they owed her an amount of R38-million, while her family trust was worth R30-million.

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She had claimed more than 20 victims with her elaborate scheme.

As if that wasn't enough of a lie, Sandra included that her family trust pays her an amount of R180,000 per year and when the complainant became suspicious and asked for the money he was owed, she claimed she had cancer. This was also untrue.

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Finally, she was arrested and charged after she had failed to meet the deadlines for any of the payments she had promised the complainants, who had lost millions in this scam.

And just when you thought things couldn't get crazier, Robinson has pleaded not guilty.

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As for Rupert? Well, he's even heard of the case, saying he is aware of the case but typically answered only with: "No comment.”

The case is set to resume on the 19, 20, and 21 October 2021.

Sandra isn't the world's first con artist and she certainly won't be the last.

Here is a short round-up of some of the most well-known and infamous con artists that ever lived:

Main image courtesy of iStock/Kendal Swart