The country’s biggest gold buyer, Pedzai ‘‘Scott’’ Sakupwanya,
THE country’s biggest gold buyer, Pedzai ‘‘Scott’’ Sakupwanya, has warned that there are scammers targeting unsuspecting people using his name and forged contacts.
This comes as the crooks have been duping people through scams that involve the South African Rand and United States Dollars — all in the name of the businessman-cum-politician.
Sakupwanya last night confirmed to the Daily News that his images, forged contacts — including bona fide bank details and a South African number — were being used by scammers to dupe people.
“I am not in the business of transacting in Rand or any form of currency. I don’t run an Instagram or Facebook page, from which some of my images have been purportedly taken from. I would like to warn people that scammers are on the loose and are using my name, images and South African numbers to con people.
People who deal with me know how I conduct my business “My business is not conducted on social media. Those that we interact with know where our offices are, who to contact and who to consummate their dealings with,” Sakupwanya said.
“People must take heed of this message. Today (yesterday) someone prominent became the latest victim of these scammers. People are falling for these tricks and sadly, they realise they have been cheated when it is too late,” Sakupwanya added.
This is not the first time that Sakupwanya’s name has been used by crooks to try and dupe unsuspecting people. In 2022, Sakupwanya and BetterBrands Jewellery were forced to issue notices in the mainstream media, warning corporates and individuals against crooks who were purporting to be his representatives.
All this comes as Sakupwanya has in the last few years built a business empire straddling mining, jewellery, petroleum, construction and property development. Sakupwanya has also been very active in sport, where his football club — Scottland — won promotion to the Premier Soccer League at the first time of asking.
Sakupwanya is also a benefactor of many premier soccer league clubs and his company, BetterBrands Gold, is the sponsor of the Zimbabwe senior men’s soccer team — the Warriors
