Mense from the Kaap to Joburg are claiming that a Parow man has been conning them out of thousands of rands and their furniture that he is supposed to be repairing.
Athlone resident Henry Sebritz said he made contact with André Jansen at the start of this year to reupholster his furniture but after handing over R8500, he is still waiting for the job to be completed.
“We did some renovations here at the house in February and we got André’s details on Facebook but after he came here to do the job, he has just not been back,” says Henry.
“He was supposed to reupholster two couches and put in blinds for the house and he asked for the deposit upfront which we paid but now we just get excuse after excuse.
“I eventually had to get somebody else to buy blinds and even a new couch so I am actually out of more money.
“Afterwards, I saw on Facebook and other sites that he has been doing this for many years and there are even stories of him doing it in areas outside of Cape Town like Johannesburg and Benoni.”
Henry adds: “He would tell me that he is simply the middle man and he has no control of his suppliers but I do not think that is true because if you check all the people’s stories then you will see that he is doing it all the time.
“If he really has issues with his suppliers then how can he still be doing business?”
On Facebook and Hello Peter, customers complained of paying deposits to Jansen and getting nothing in return.
Desmond Finnis, a private investigator, says eight people, from Cape Town to Joburg, contacted him to investigate Jansen.
He says he is gathering information before reporting the case to police.
“Their company, CJ Blinds, is not a registered company and together with his wife they have been conning people from all over,” says Finnis.
“When I look at all the cases then I see he has been based in Parow, Grabouw and Benoni so he simply bounces around and takes people’s money.”
When the Daily Voice contacted Jansen, he denied being a conman and is getting in touch with all of his customers.
“I take full responsibility for everything as I have had issues with my suppliers but all I have been doing recently has been to make things right,” Jansen says.
“If the products cannot be returned in a timely manner then I will gladly arrange for refunds to be given.”