AFU secures R11m recovery after Foschini accountant falls victim to WhatsApp fraud

The Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) in the Western Cape has secured a forfeiture order of R11 million after a senior treasury accountant at Foschini Retail Group (TFG) was duped into authorising payments totalling more than R22 million into fraudulent bank accounts.

The forfeiture order was granted by the High Court of South Africa, Western Cape Division, following evidence led by Senior State Advocate Nomasomi Nodada-Gantolo.

According to evidence before court, on February 3 2025 a senior treasury accountant in TFG’s finance and advisory department, Johanna Rademan, received a WhatsApp message from a person posing as the group’s chief financial officer, Ralph Buddle. Although she did not have Buddle’s cellphone number, she believed the message was genuine because his photograph appeared on the WhatsApp profile.

The message claimed that a recent board meeting had resulted in confidential developments that would impact TFG’s operations. Rademan was told she would need to sign a non-disclosure agreement before further details could be shared.

Later the same day, Rademan received a WhatsApp call from a man who introduced himself as Gerald du Plessis, claiming to be a lawyer assisting Buddle with a proposed acquisition. Du Plessis emailed the NDA to Rademan, which she signed, and later explained the process to be followed for urgent “tranche payments”, saying the instructions would come from the CFO.

Rademan subsequently received a WhatsApp instruction, purportedly from Buddle, stating that payment requests had been sent via encrypted chat and needed to be executed urgently. She was instructed to make two payments to separate bank accounts, both in the name of ICUBED Distribution (Pty) Ltd, in the amounts of R11.785 million and R11 million.

She emailed the instructions to a colleague responsible for loading online banking payments, and both transactions were processed.

Later that evening, Rademan became concerned after checking the contact numbers on Truecaller and noting that the names did not correspond with those of the individuals who had contacted her. She alerted TFG’s group financial controller, who confirmed it was likely a scam, noting that Buddle would not issue payment instructions via WhatsApp.

Buddle and the group financial controller immediately contacted TFG’s relationship managers at the two banks into which the funds had been paid. Both banks placed temporary blocks on the accounts.

Further investigations confirmed that Buddle had no knowledge of ICUBED Distribution and had not contacted Rademan regarding any payments. His cellphone number also differed from the one used by the impersonator.

One bank managed to reverse the R11.785 million payment back to TFG. Adv Nodada-Gantolo subsequently obtained a preservation order for the remaining R11 million on August 6, last year. A final forfeiture order was granted on 3 February 2026, ensuring the funds were recovered.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the case highlighted the importance of swift reporting and decisive intervention by financial institutions and prosecutors.

“Through the work of the Asset Forfeiture Unit, the NPA was able to prevent criminals from benefiting from the proceeds of fraud,” Ntabazalila said. 

Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Nicolette Bell praised the AFU for persistently tracing and reclaiming funds targeted by suspected criminals.

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