{"id":120914,"date":"2026-03-18T14:57:58","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T14:57:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers"},"modified":"2026-03-18T15:09:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T15:09:06","slug":"how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers","title":{"rendered":"How one businessman lost Rwf350m to property scammers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. <\/strong><\/span>A Kigali-based businessman is counting losses after falling victim to a property scam that cost him up to Rwf350 million, money he paid in good faith for a house and land that, as he found later, did not belong to the sellers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was promised property worth Rwf1.2 billion. I paid Rwf350 million before I realised I was being robbed,\u201d the victim, who requested anonymity, said.<\/p>\n

His ordeal is part of a wider case involving 11 suspects who were paraded by the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) on March 17. All of them are alleged to have participated in fraudulent schemes linked to the illegal sale of land and houses.<\/p>\n

The businessman recounted that his troubles began about six months ago, when a man he knew approached him with what appeared to be a worthwhile offer, a property located in Nyarugenge District valued at Rwf1.2 billion. He was told that the rightful owners lived abroad, and the property was undergoing a legal succession process in court. The businessman maintained contact, and he later was introduced to another individual who claimed to be one of the heirs.<\/p>\n

Rwanda Investigation Bureau paraded 11 suspects accused of involvement in various crimes linked to illegal sale of properties on March 17. Courtesy<\/p>\n

\u201cThey told me they were waiting for court documents to finalise the succession process. Eventually, they presented documents that looked legitimate,\u201d he said. Convinced by the paperwork and reassured by familiar faces, he agreed to purchase the property.<\/p>\n

Over the months, the businessman made several payments. He first paid Rwf10 million as the initial deposit, followed by Rwf240 million in a second instalment, and later Rwf100 million. In total, he paid about Rwf350 million, with an agreement that the remaining balance would be cleared during the final transfer of ownership.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt no point did I suspect anything. The documents looked authentic, and the people involved seemed credible,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The turning point came just as he was preparing to complete the final payment and transfer process. \u201cI was at the stage of finalising the land transfer when I received a call from RIB informing me that I was being defrauded,\u201d he recounted.<\/p>\n

Reflecting on his experience, the victim urged others to exercise caution when engaging in property transactions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI trusted people and documents that looked real. I never imagined it could be a scam,\u201d he said, calling on people to be more vigilant.<\/p>\n

The businessman is not the only victim of the fraud. Several people have fallen victim to the group of 11 suspects now in RIB custody.<\/p>\n

RIB spokesperson Thierry Murangira said the suspects are believed to be part of a network involved in multiple offences, including forming a criminal group, impersonation, fraud, forgery, and use of forged documents, as well as money laundering.<\/p>\n

Murangira said that the investigations are ongoing to identify any other person who is linked with the group. He further added that so far, approximately Rwf1 billion linked to the fraudulent activities have been recovered. However, the total value of the properties involved has not yet been established.<\/p>\n

The suspects are currently detained at various RIB stations in Kigali. They face prison sentences ranging from two to 15 years.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Rwanda<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. A Kigali-based businessman is counting losses after falling victim to a property scam that cost him up to Rwf350 million, money he paid in good faith for a house and land that, as he found later, did not belong to the sellers. \u201cI was promised property worth Rwf1.2 billion. I paid Rwf350 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":120913,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,14],"tags":[320,1350,2232,758],"class_list":["post-120914","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-crime","tag-estate","tag-land","tag-rwanda"],"yoast_head":"\nHow one businessman lost Rwf350m to property scammers - Rwanda<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A Kigali-based businessman is counting losses after falling victim to a property scam that cost him up to Rwf350 million ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How one businessman lost Rwf350m to property scammers\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A Kigali-based businessman is counting losses after falling victim to a property scam that cost him up to Rwf350 million ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Rwanda\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-18T14:57:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-18T15:09:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2026\/03\/sm_1773833862.884056.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"666\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"How one businessman lost Rwf350m to property scammers\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-18T14:57:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-18T15:09:06+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers\"},\"wordCount\":546,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2026\/03\/sm_1773833862.884056.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Crime\",\"estate\",\"land\",\"Rwanda\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/policy\/how-one-businessman-lost-rwf350m-to-property-scammers\",\"name\":\"How one businessman lost Rwf350m to property scammers - 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