MAID RETURNS FROM THE DEAD

This gives a whole new meaning to "raising the dead"!

'Maid returns from the dead'
September 28 2006 at 05:32AM
By Poloko Tau

When he saw his maid standing at his door, Brian Hough thought he was seeing a ghost. On Monday, Hough had received a call informing him that Laureen Sibanda had died in a car accident - but it turned out he was nearly scammed into giving out money towards her funeral while she was still alive. Sibanda had spent the long weekend with her family in Hillbrow and was reporting for her normal Tuesday part-time job at Hough's home in Kensington, Johannesburg.

"A man calling himself Michael called and said he was my domestic's brother, told me he had bad news. He then asked me to call him back as he didn't have enough airtime. When I called back he was crying. He said Laureen was involved in a car accident on her way from a society meeting earlier on Monday. I felt very distraught at the news," he said.

How did he get all the information about him and his maid? The caller then asked Hough to send him some airtime so that he could call other relatives and inform them of the death. R220 worth of airtime was sent to his cellphone number. He then called again later and asked Hough if he would be attending the funeral."He asked me if I would be able to contribute towards funeral costs. I was prepared to do that, but I said I would rather speak to the deceased's husband," Hough said.

This was the last he heard of "Michael". The number he used was off when tried again later. Sibanda, who stays in Hillbrow with her husband and children, works part-time for the Houghs and reports for duty only on Tuesdays. When she did just that she gave her employer the fright of his life."I just froze and looked at her. I mean, she's supposed to be dead," Hough said.

Sibanda said she was surprised at Hough's reaction when he saw her."He stood there like he just saw a ghost. I thought maybe I wasn't supposed to come to work. I didn't know what was going on because normally he would open the gate immediately when he saw me," Sibanda said. When she came into the house Hough told her the story. "She was more surprised than we were. But we were all happy that she was alive," Hough said.

For Sibanda, this was a "bad omen"."It's bad luck. I must pray that nothing happens after all this," she said. But the question is - who called Hough and how did he get all the information about him and his maid? Hough then called the man's cellphone service providers and was told that he was the fourth person who called with the same problem. He said he tried to open a case at Cleveland police station, but was told by the police that the matter did not warrant a case and "they were just not interested".

Johannesburg police believe this could be a scam and confirmed that it was not happening for the first time. "This looks like a scam and the complainant was not supposed to have been turned away. A docket could have been opened with a charge of theft under false pretence. He must go back to the station and they will open a case and investigate," said police Sergeant Sanku Tsunke.

Police urged employers to keep contact numbers of their domestic workers and their next-of-kin in case of emergencies. "The employer shouldn't have bought airtime, but called the number that he would have had to confirm all that. This is the only way this scam can be discouraged," Tsunke said.

The Star reported a similar case in July.
This article was originally published on page 16 of The Star on September 28, 2006