A Delft man has been bust for operating an online scam in which he pretended to be a talent scout, then allegedly conned vroue into supplying him with “intimate” photographs that would be used for modelling campaigns.
The 39-year-old skurk made his second appearance at the Bellville Regional Courton Wednesday, after he was arrested for allegedly running an elaborate online scam, exploiting dozens of women using social media, reports the Cape Argus.
Brent Davids, from Voorbrug, was gevang in February. He faces two counts of extortion and fraud.
Davids was granted R1 500 bail, but has failed to pay the amount and is currently in custody.
Davids apparently managed the scam alone, creating multiple fake social media profiles to target women of all races and ages, and just using a computer and from the comfort of his home.
The State indicated that it would bring further charges against Davids as the investigating team are still counting the charges that came from the moerse docket.
So far, only two complainants, including a major retail brand, have been listed on the charge sheet.
It is alleged that Davids would contact the ladies on social media, by pretending to work for a leading retail fashion group.
The supposed “talent recruiter” would then request their personal information and use it as leverage to extort kaalgat photos of them at a later stage.
The State contends that Davids, fraudulently posing as a recruiter, would request videos and photographs from the victims, claiming they would be used for modelling campaigns.
Davids apparently ran the scam between May 2021 and February this year, and threatened that he would post his victims’ personal information online and brand them as prostitutes after demanding that they send him intimate photos.
If the women blocked him, Davids would allegedly, “threaten to expose them”.
The matter has been postponed to November 3, in order to finalise the charges.