A video has emerged of an alleged serial “fake” beggar being confronted and thrown to the ground by a woman outside a Whanganui Pak’nSave. Video / Facebook
A video has emerged of a serial beggar with allegedly fake back stories being confronted and thrown to the ground by a woman outside a Whanganui Pak’nSave.
The beggar caught the attention of community groups across Auckland after standing on street corners and supermarkets across numerous suburbs asking for money and creating different identities, including being pregnant, in an alleged effort to trick people into feeling sorry for her.
But her luck ran out in Whanganui after the alleged scammer, who was holding a sign, was grabbed by the shirt and handbag and wrestled to the ground by a disgruntled local. Video of the incident shows the assailant standing over the fake beggar, before ripping her phone out of her hand.
The alleged scammer can be heard screaming during the altercation.
One person in the comments section of the video claimed: “This woman was trying to get her begging sign. The beggar was getting violent so it was a bit of back and forth. She was surely annoying her.”
The woman was seen pulling on the alleged scammer's shirt and bag before throwing her to the ground and ripping her phone off her.
It’s alleged she’s attempted to garner money from members of the public across multiple Auckland suburbs including Silverdale, Manukau, Takanini, Greenlane, Westgate, Mt Roskill, Mt Wellington, Papakura and Pakuranga before venturing to Tauranga and now Whanganui.
The Herald understands in some cases the beggar has worn a head scarf and pretended to be a pregnant woman while holding a sign that said: “I’m pregnant. I need help for food and rent. God bless you.”
Aucklanders claim they saw the same woman just days later with a different sign claiming she has a baby girl and needed help with rent and food.
Numerous Auckland community groups have been flooded with images of the woman warning others of the apparent ruse.
Some locals said they were approached by the woman for “help” and when they offered her food she asked for money instead.
One local wrote: “My partner and I offered to buy some groceries and a gift for each of her ‘kids’ and she said no [and asked for money instead].”
Another who had an interaction with her in Mt Roskill claimed the scammer, who was wearing a headscarf at the time, revealed she was a five-month-pregnant Romanian woman who needed $800 for rent.
The beggar is understood to have created a number of back stories and signs in a bid to make locals feel sorry for her and give her money.
The person said the alleged scammer changed her story multiple times. In one version she claimed to have initially arrived in New Zealand on a refugee visa but later changed her story, saying her visa was cancelled upon arrival.
During the alleged interaction, the Mt Roskill local gave her a food parcel only for her to later find the parcel left on the side of Richardson Rd.
Aucklanders from numerous suburbs have claimed the woman is part of a network of people scamming locals.
Police said they weren’t aware of any reports involving the woman, while Auckland Council said it had not received any complaints relating to beggars with fake back stories across Auckland.
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