The Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) in the Western Cape has secured a court order to forfeit R11 million after a senior Foschini Retail Group (TFG) accountant was tricked into paying millions of rand into fraudulent bank accounts.

The High Court in Cape Town heard how scammers impersonated TFG Chief Financial Officer Ralph Buddle in February last year. The fraudsters contacted senior treasury accountant Johanna Rademan via WhatsApp, using Buddle’s profile photo to appear legitimate. They claimed urgent, confidential payments were needed following a board meeting and convinced her to sign a non-disclosure agreement.

Rademan was then guided through so-called “tranche payments” by a man posing as a lawyer involved in a company acquisition. She was instructed to arrange two payments, R11.785 million and R11 million, to bank accounts linked to a company called ICUBED Distribution.

Later that evening, Rademan grew suspicious and checked the phone numbers on Truecaller, which showed names that did not match the people she believed she had been communicating with. She alerted TFG’s Group Financial Controller, who confirmed the company’s CFO would not issue instructions via WhatsApp.

The company immediately contacted its banks, which managed to freeze the funds. One bank returned nearly R12 million, while the remaining R11 million was preserved through a court order in August 2025. That money has now been officially forfeited to the state.

Investigators confirmed that Buddle had no knowledge of the payments and had not communicated with Rademan. His real cellphone number was different from the one used by the scammers.

Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Nicolette Bell, praised the AFU for tracking and reclaiming stolen funds. Authorities say civil forfeiture powers are increasingly being used to recover money from fraud cases, even when suspects have not yet been arrested.