The Special Cybersecurity Division (DSC) has just dismantled a fraud network involving quackery, psychological manipulation, and mobile money transfers. Two individuals, identified by the initials SD and OD, were brought before the prosecutor after swindling 8.5 million FCFA from a young farmer by exploiting his credulity and vulnerability, according to Seneweb sources.

It all begins in a police station

The story begins in 2025, in a most unexpected setting: the Jaxaay police station. The victim, IS, had gone there for simple administrative tasks related to retrieving his impounded motorcycle. It is there that he meets SD, who introduces himself as a man of faith, specializing in prayers and blessings. The two men quickly connect.

Encouraged by this favorable first impression, SD offers IS a "listikhar," a spiritual consultation. The diagnosis is subtly slanted: to make his herd of cattle prosper and achieve great wealth, urgent sacrifices are necessary.

To seal this supposed pact of abundance, the charlatan gives his victim a bottle whose contents are presented as mystical and blessed.

The mystical bottle and the financial machine

It was the use of this bottle that sealed the trap. Before the DSC investigators, IS confessed that after using the liquid, he fell into a state of total submission, obeying without resistance all the demands for money made by SD and his accomplice OD.

The financial losses are considerable. In total, 8.5 million FCFA was paid to the two fraudsters through two separate channels: 6.5 million FCFA transferred via Orange Money, leaving usable digital traces, and 2 million FCFA handed over directly in cash. To finance these repeated payments, IS sold nine head of cattle from the family herd without his father's knowledge, selling them to butchers and private individuals for a total of 6.5 million FCFA.

The family raises the alarm

The affair came to light in April 2026. As IS was preparing to sell another ox from the herd, his brother AS objected, intrigued by his behavior. Pressed with questions, IS finally confessed that he was being pressured by individuals claiming to be marabouts, who constantly demanded money from him in the name of supposed prayers.

The father, AAS, alerted by his sons, then inspected the barn and was shocked to discover that nine oxen were missing. Faced with the evidence, IS confessed everything. It was in these circumstances that the family decided to contact the DSC (Department of Animal Care) in April 2026.

The con artists confessed: money from the djinns financed a house

Placed in police custody and subjected to questioning by DSC investigators, SD and OD eventually broke down. They admitted to having committed to offering prayers to boost the victim's livestock business, presenting each request for money as an offering imperatively required by the "rawanes" — the djinns — to validate the rituals.

SD formally admitted to receiving funds via electronic transfer as well as 400,000 FCFA in cash. Far from being used for spiritual sacrifices, these funds were used to finance the construction of his own house in his native village.

The investigations also revealed the existence of several other transactions carried out by a certain MLD, suggesting the existence of other victims and a wider network.

The two individuals involved were brought before the competent judicial authorities. Following this case, the DSC (Directorate of Consumer Protection) is issuing a solemn appeal to the public to be extra vigilant against the mirage of easy wealth and the charlatan practices now spreading through digital tools.