An investigation by Richard Kawazi
There is a mass exodus of Zimbabweans taking chances migrating to the United Kingdom as health workers employed as Nurse Aides. Desperate for a better life in the diaspora, many are using their savings or taking loans to complete a certificate in Nurse Aide as a stepping stone to secure the UK visa.
Red cross society and the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) is offering the nurse aide course for $200 USD and masses of Zimbabweans are enrolling for the course . This investigation, goes deep into the hallows of opportunists masquerading as cheaper alternatives to securing a nurse aide certificate.
The lead investigator has highly placed sources working in the human resources departments of government hospitals across Mashonaland -West who informed the investigation that government currently recognises nurse aides trained by Red Cross Society and St John Ambulance and other accredited institutions . Though government is not the only employer, other health service providers may accept nurse aides trained by private institutions.
However the problem with this particular group of people training nurse aides is masquerading as an affiliate of Red Cross Society which altogether questions and discredits their authenticity and promises to people of getting employment in the public sector as well as abroad.
More so, our highly placed sources at the Red Cross Society told the lead investigator that the one week curriculum offered by the bogus training institution in question does not match the acceptable standard of nurse aide training. This is information was uncovered after documents and training manuals used by the same con artists were made available for assessment to our Red Cross Sources employed as tutors.
The problem is that unsuspecting victims are training for certification that is not registered with relevant regulatory authorities and not recognized by majority of health institution hence they are not accredited and can not be used to attain any formal employment locally or abroad.
The bogus nurse aide training network does not have a known identity but instead it masquerades as an affiliate of Red Cross which is a charity organization funded by well wishers in the diaspora as well as unknown governments. The identified scam artists have created a network of social media groups luring people to sign up for an intensive nursing aide courses across big towns in Zimbabwe from Harare going south to Chegutu reaching Gweru establishing a chapter in every town.
The scam artistslure their victims from the process of getting a nurse aide certificate, applying a health worker visa and match making with potential employers in the United Kingdom. The nurse aide scam is a classic, where cyber criminals prey on the desperate and provide a cheaper alternative. Victims are promised jobs, high wages and a visa.
Many have fallen victim to the scam and the investigator joined the network of social media group and participated in every activity of the bogus nurse aide school that was being run online by an organised set of individuals living in different parts of the world.
On this investigation, the scam is run under the banner Red Cross, with a string of WhatsApp groups led by users with UK phone numbers.
Here are some of the identified groups.
- Red Cross Chegutu
- Red Cross Harare
- Redcross Kadoma
These social media groups are run by several administrators each using +44 extension mobile numbers and some attached to local Zimbabwe networks.
At the end of this investigation, ZNCJ.ORG discovered that Zimbabweans across the country had once again fallen victim to a scam and lost their hard earned money desparate for the UK visa.The conclusion of the investigation identified the architects of the scam and how they managed to siphon large sums of money from unsuspecting victims in a short space of time.
There is more to understand about this massive exodus and understanding if its at all real. The luring factor is that, there is a high demand for care givers in the United Kingdom and a certificate in Nurse Aide.
The bait
The promise of securing a hassle free UK visa, employment and earning an average of £25 an hour is the main luring factor for the victims. Desperate to leave Zimbabwe in search of greener pastures, unsuspecting victims are constantly bombarded with disinformation that countries in the UK are directly hiring caregivers from African countries. Victims are constantly told the demand for care givers in old age homes has increased since the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic.
With the promise of making £25 and hour, many Zimbabweans will do anything to grab the opportunity for a better living in the diaspora.
Scam organisation structure
The scam artists are organised in heirachy where the leader is the most vocal across all social media platform. In this investigation, our investigative reporter identified one woman who gives directives on how payments are collected and the training venues.
- The group leader (@my Girl Are MaSipambi) as per WhatsApp Identinty
- Cash collector (Partson Jaure) according to the WhatsApp profile
- Meeting point ( Kingston house corner to Tongogara and Kwame Nkrumah 2nd floor)
- Assistant disinformation agents
- The so called lecturers (Unidentified by real names)
The head of the scam who identified her self as Chihera AKA @my Girl Are MaSipambi in the voice notes sent in the WhatsApp groups claims to be running a charity – private voluntary organization sponsored by well wishers in the diaspora and the government of Zimbabwe as seen in the screen shot. The scam is run in an anonymous fashion where the bogus nurse aide scam is nameless but masquerading as an affiliate of Red Cross Society.
The group leader and head administrator is constantly bombarding victims with information on making swift payments.
Audio
The group leader seems not have a definitive course of action to administrate the course. The investigation heard that, classes and venue only commerce whenever payment has been made to the cash collector.
In the following audio recording, the female group leader directly admits by making attire necessary that they are administering a nurse aide course supported by Red Cross Society. She further, displays the nature of her wayward unprofessionalism and lack of a fixed aboard by constantly changing payment locations, training centers and secluding those who have made payment.
The leader is also supported by other social media group administrators who also help misinformation and motivational messages of relocating to the UK.
The cash collector
The investigation has uncovered that the scam is worth thousands of United States dollars. According to the recruitment criteria, the group leader and cash collector can only conduct their three day training course if 20 or more people enroll for the course.
Charged at $30 per person, each batch of victims makes a gross of at least $600 and the courses are conducted simultaneously in conformed locations in Harare, Chegutu, Kadoma and Gweru.
This is the part where the scam leadership applies pressure on their victims. The scam artists are not of a fixed aboard. Our investigation followed three unsuspecting victims who made payments of $30 for the unscrupulous training program.
The payments are collected by a man identified as Partson Jaure who meets up with unsuspecting victims in various locations in Harare.
“❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️Payment before training. ❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️Come pa Kingston hse corner to tongogara and Kwame 2nd floor PA church ask for Partson kuna security kana mave kundishaya toti fm 11 to 1pm will be waiting pa entrance ye church musapinde mukati munenge mune service. Hapazi panze panobhadharirwa but inside the building mu one of the rooms dze church but not main room inoitirwa service. ❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️”
“Come pa Kingston hse corner to tongogara and Kwame 2nd floor PA church ask for partson kuna security kana mave kundishaya toti fm 11 to 1pm will be waiting pa entrance ye church musapinde mukati munenge mune service” Jaure communicating with group members.
The message clearly shows that Patson Jaure the cash collector is not of fixed aboard. Victims are strictly asked to pay cash and are not offered traceable payment methods such as EFT, PayPal or Zip it. The investigation revealed that Patson Jaure only makes himself available when payments are about to made and he is never available for a normal working shift. Jaure only shows face for a few hours and is never in one place for more than an hour or two.
The bogus certificate
The certificate is a pure piece of forgery and fraudulent activity. During this investigation, we requested our informant to provide us an image of the the so called nurse aide certificates. Victims were scammed that they will be issued a Red Cross certificate with all security features of authentication.
However to the victims and the investigators surprise, the so called certificate is not affiliated with Red Cross society at all. The certificate is embedded with two organisations logos and endorsement of one T Mnagagwa as Chairman from Tonganyika Trust.
According to an online article by Zimeye, Tonganyika Trust was launched in 2021 by Harare South MP Tongai Mnangagwa as a project to empower young women with critical skills for self help and the project is said to be supported by Women’s banks.
The companies with existing logos on the certificate are Zimbabwe science and Technology Association and Tonganyika Trust and Immediately the investigator searched for the companies if the have online presence.
Zimbabwe Science and Technology Association (ZSTA) is also somewhat a company with an obscure digital footprint. The investigator attempted to search for company directors on LinkedIn and other listings but to no avail.
The helpless victims
The investigation managed to trace victims who had been duped money for the in the whole process of acquiring a certificate and securing employment as a UK health worker. ZNCJ.ORG. managed to get the story of a 19 year old woman from Kadoma, whose identity is withheld for security reasons.
The young lady was devastated after she realizing that there was nothing much she could do with the certificate she was awarded after she paid $30 USD and training for 3 days in a church hall in ware Valley Kadoma. She thought that the opportunity was an escape from the abyss of poverty and sexual exploitation. The young woman narrated a spine chilling story of how she was involved in soft prostitution for survival as an orphan. Raped countless times before her 20th birthday, all she wanted was a new start.
The victim was promised placement and attachment after completing the certificate, but her tutors are no longer assisting her with that. After attachment, she was advised to carry on with writing the English test, TB test and sponsorship then off she goes to the UK.
After the lead investigator explained the legitimate process of acquiring a UK health worker visa, the victim bemoaned how she was duped into thinking it was an easy process.
Tracing the con artists
The group leaders are using foreign numbers with UK extension codes. This investigation managed to uncover that, non of the trainees or group members have been on a mobile phone call with any of the group leaders. At face value, it seems as if the group leaders are running and coordinating events from the UK whilst the only person making contact with trainees is the cash collector, Partson Jaure.
However after digging deep, the investigator uncovered that the group leaders could be anywhere in the world. Unreachable on a local or abroad phone number, the group leaders use Android or IOS apps that provide them with virtual UK phone numbers.
The virtual phone numbers are not entirely for free but the cost between 4 – 10 euros to verify a WhatsApp account with a virtual phone number. You can read this article on how to get a UK virtual phone number to verify WhatsApp number.
Red Cross Society Position
Red Cross Society was reached for comment and exclusively denied affiliation with the nursing aide scam in this investigation.
A highly placed Training officer, blatantly denied affiliation with any individuals who are claiming to be with them. They said it’s a malicious group of people who are swindling hardworking unsuspecting victims of their hard earned money.
The actual requirements and qualifications for a health worker visa in the UK
Countries in the UK have confirmed a demand for health care workers. The dire situation has been worsened by the devastating effects of Covid-19 which has opened legislation in the foreign countries to open up opportunities for job seekers.
In summary, a successful visa application will require a health care worker to hold a certificate to qualify them in their area of expertise, in this case nurse aid aide certificates from accredited institutions are verifies as legit.
The next step is gaining experience through internships, writing an lELTS English language test, TB test, Police clearance and sponsorship. You can also read this publication by the UK government regarding visa applications.
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