Four convicted fraudsters, including a Real Housewives star, face sentencing in Cape Town

The sentencing proceedings of four convicted fraudsters, including a woman that was in the Real Housewives of Cape Town reality show  are expected to continue in the Cape Town Regional Court later this week following their conviction in a sophisticated online dating scam that fleeced two foreign women of more than R3.2 million.

The group, Uguchukwu Nawachukwu, Stanley Osakwe, Bright Odumo Ogedengbe and Kgalalelo Loveline Abinokhauno, also known as Moloko, were found guilty of fraud after targeting two victims from North America through an elaborate romance scam.

According to the State, the victims, one from the United States and the other from Canada, were lured through online dating platforms into believing they were communicating with an American engineer working on a project in South Africa.

The fictitious engineer repeatedly claimed to be facing emergencies and financial setbacks, convincing the women to transfer substantial sums of money with promises that they would be repaid. Unfortunately, the repayments never materialised.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the fraud was orchestrated by an organised criminal syndicate that used various bank accounts and a church structure to receive and move the proceeds of crime.

"The engineer was a hoax created by a group of organised criminals," Ntabazalila explained.

The court heard that the funds were channelled through accounts linked to Okil Management, Bright Ven Trading and two bank accounts belonging to Glory Restoration Assembly Church.

The church, where all the accused were members, was allegedly used as a front to launder money generated through the scam. Several of the accused served as principals or signatories on the church's bank accounts, while numerous cash transactions were allegedly made from the church's business and investment accounts.

Ntabazalila said accused number two, Innocent Abinokhauno, who is married to Kgalalelo Loveline Abinokhauno, absconded after the State closed its case. He is regarded by prosecutors as the mastermind behind the operation and remains at large.

The State further alleged that one of the convicted accused used his personal bank account to facilitate the laundering of funds before substantial amounts were transferred into church accounts. Nawachukwu was identified as the head pastor of Glory Restoration Assembly Church.

The case is the latest to cast a spotlight on personalities linked to the Real Housewives franchise. 

Earlier this year, former Real Housewives of Pretoria cast member Melany "Mel" Viljoen made international headlines after she and her husband were arrested in the United States in connection with an alleged retail theft scheme.

The couple have also previously faced scrutiny over allegations relating to the Tammy Taylor Nails franchise network in South Africa.