“Catch me if you can – why are people bothering me?”
And that is exactly what the Hawks intend to do after this brazen message was posted on the Facebook page of an alleged conman and rapist who preys on unsuspecting models.
The message was posted this week by a man calling himself Thomas Bester, the alias that the alleged criminal most commonly uses.
When asked whether the man’s actions could escalate to murdering his victims, Lieutenant-Col-onel Anton Booysen, KZN head of the Psychologically Motivated Crimes Unit, said: “I can’t say for sure, but there’s a possibility it might progress to that. We fear that he is progressing in terms of the crimes he is committing and that he is becoming more violent.”
Booysen said a warrant had been obtained for the arrest of Bester, who is believed to be in his early 20s and police yesterday released a picture of the man whose several aliases include Nathan Bradley Cleopaths, Kenny Young and Magagula.
Since Bester’s identikit was released last week, Booysen said the police had been inundated with calls from women who claimed that they had also been swindled by him.
“There have been more than 20 cases against the man since the identikit was released. We have received reports almost every day,” he said.
Nokuthula Khumalo was robbed of a laptop and cellphone. When she was shown a photograph of Bester yesterday, she said, “Yes that’s him.”
Last week Khumalo said: “He was well-presented and well-spoken, his dress was smart casual… he even encouraged us to ask questions. He hadn’t done anything to create doubt in my mind.”
While it was initially believed that Bester ran his alleged scam from Durban, Joburg and Cape Town, Booysen said the police had also had reports from the Free State. “We can’t really pinpoint where he’s from because he’s told so many people so many lies, but he seems to be very familiar with Joburg and Durban.”
Booysen said Bester had various ID numbers. Bester, who allegedly uses the same modus operandi to lure unsuspecting young women, made headlines last month when he was accused of raping a Joburg model in an Umhlanga hotel.
“He advertises on the internet for young women seeking to pursue a career in modelling. He then travels with them from one part of the country to another and makes the victims pay for his and their expenses, promising them reimbursements once they reach their destination,” said Booysen.
“He makes them book into hotels or B&Bs for a few days. He takes away their laptops, iPods and cellphones, saying he needs to have them scanned for security reasons, or that he needs their undivided attention.
“He then vanishes, does not settle his hotel bill and steals the girls’ valuable items,” said Booysen.
Speaking about last month’s rape, Booysen said the 24-year-old model had responded to one of many e-mails from a man calling himself Thomas Bester and, with her boyfriend, met him in the foyer of a building at Auckland Park, Joburg.
“He is such a good conman that he conned both of them to allow the girl to travel in her car all the way to Durban.
“He even pretended to be making phone calls from her phone for hairdo and nail bookings. He said all costs incurred by her would be paid back once they reached Durban.
“He made her drive directly to The City Lodge in Umhlanga Rocks, where he made her shower, dress up and do some modelling.
“He then tied her up, cut her face and raped her, before vanishing with her valuables,” he said.
A case was opened by the Durban North police, and the police have been on his trail ever since.
The victim’s mother, Penny, who has set up a Facebook group to warn other girls about her daughter’s attacker and how he operates, said this week she was scared he could get even more violent.
It has also emerged that the man has previously been arrested on fraud charges and several entertainment industry websites warn of his alleged fraudulent activities.
Booysen said while there was only one case of rape, there were two other cases where if he had not been interrupted, the man might have proceeded to rape his victims.
“There was one incident where he lured a Joburg girl and her mother to Durban. He rented a bed and breakfast place for the both of them and they stayed there for five days.
“He then took the girl with him to an isolated place but she somehow managed to escape. Recently he also convinced a young model to go with him from Joburg to Cape Town, promising her a modelling job.
“En route to Cape Town the girl was alerted by friends about who she was with. She managed to escape at the Bellville bus stop unharmed,” he said. Booysen said Bester was wanted for cases of rape, fraud and kidnapping and urged anyone who had information on his whereabouts or had any information that could assist in the investigation to contact him on 082 567 4187.
Also included in Bester's Facebook page is information about his tertiary education where he states that he studied at the Tshwane University of Technology and has worked for SABC3. He also says that he lives in Cape Town.
Meanwhile, another account on Facebook that has been confirmed by Booysen as one of Bester's many aliases is that of Kelly Young, where he claims that he works at Black Entertainment Television.
Another victim from Durban has since come forward with information, and the modus operandi is identical to that revealed in sister newspaper the Tribune last week.
The man charmed his way via Facebook Inbox, met Nonhlanhla Zikhali's* parents, produced documentation from MTV and fled with her and her sister to Cape Town by bus after first agreeing to fly there.
“On the morning I suspect he was trying to kidnap me, he woke me up really early in the morning and told me we had to meet with some PR company in Cape Town for a shoot.”
Thanks to her friends who are in the entertainment industry, Zikhali was alerted that something was not right.
“When I realised I was in danger, I remained calm so that he did not know that I knew what was going on.”
Zikhali says that she lives in fear while Bester is at large.
* Not her real name.
-Independent on Saturday