'Conman' dupes 21 homeowners
2008-02-22 09:26
Durban - At least 21 Durban homeowners - who were apparently duped by a conman developer - have been evicted from their homes, police said on Friday.
Police spokesperson Captain Debbie O' Brien said a man had purchased the 21 properties at an auction and now wanted these families to vacate their homes.
The families told police that they had paid huge amounts of money to a developer for title deeds for their homes since 1995 and they refused to leave.
"None of the homeowners had the deeds or receipts and this developer has disappeared," she said.
One homeowner claims he paid R45 000 for a deed.
"There was a huge commotion there yesterday (Thursday) because the sheriff of the court began taking these people's goods out of their homes," said O' Brien.
She said the Pinetown Labour Court had an order to evict the 21 families.
"Police suspect that they were conned by this developer," said O' Brien.
Many of these families claim they were not even informed of the eviction.
She said the families were still in the homes but that police were monitoring the situation.
- SAPA