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A Northern Cape woman has been left financially shattered after allegedly being manipulated into handing over nearly R2 million in a chilling romance scam involving her former boyfriend and a traditional healer.
The victim, a retired teacher identified only as Cheryl, says the pair systematically drained her life savings, pressured her to quit her job, and convinced her to sell her belongings — all under the guise of love, healing and spiritual protection.
Now broke and struggling to rebuild her life, Cheryl has opened a fraud case with police as the men linked to the scheme walk free.
According to Cheryl, the nightmare began in June 2022 when she met a Ugandan man who introduced himself as Ronald Ssenyonga. She said she initially felt no attraction, but the relationship later developed, and he eventually moved into her home.
At the time, Cheryl was battling unexplained health problems. She claims Ssenyonga used this vulnerability to introduce her to a Ugandan traditional healer, who told her that her illnesses were caused by spiritual forces and curses attached to her property.
What followed, Cheryl says, was a calculated campaign of fear and manipulation.
She described being taken to a dark prayer room at night, where voices claiming to be her ancestors allegedly instructed her to obey the healer’s directions. She was given substances to burn and told the rituals would cure her.
The healer and Ssenyonga then convinced her to resign from her teaching job and invest her pension into a business they claimed would make her millions.
In January 2023, Cheryl withdrew R1.9 million, money she had built over 30 years of teaching, and transferred it into accounts controlled by the pair.
She was also pressured to sell her house and car, with warnings that refusing would result in serious accidents or misfortune. While she sold her car, Cheryl says she refused to sell her home after realising something was wrong.
By March 2023, the traditional healer vanished.
Ssenyonga, however, continued demanding more money. Cheryl says she later received additional funds and transferred those too before he eventually relocated to Cape Town, where he is now reportedly running an Uber business and is in a new relationship.
Today, Cheryl says she is battling to survive financially and believes the substances she was given played a role in her compliance.
“I lost everything I worked for,” she said, adding that she is now focused on rebuilding her life from nothing.
Northern Cape police spokesperson Colonel Cherelle Ehlers confirmed that a fraud case has been opened and that investigations are ongoing.
The case has reignited warnings about romance scams, spiritual manipulation and financial exploitation targeting older women — particularly those experiencing illness or loneliness.
For Cheryl, the damage is already done.
Her savings are gone. Her trust is broken. And while the investigation continues, she is left to pick up the pieces of a life dismantled by deception.
