After nine years of serving customers at a restaurant frequented by international celebrities and holidaymakers‚ CCTV footage suggests that Ishmail Sulaiman is not your average hospitable waiter.

He wrestled with two police officers for nearly 15 minutes before they managed to arrest and take him into custody for allegedly using an illegal card skimming device to siphon R60 000 from the bank account of a customer dining at the trendy Café Caprice in Camps Bay‚ Cape Town.

Syndicates armed with electronic card skimming devices have become an unpalatable reality to consumers using debit and credit cards in South Africa.

Sulaiman’s alleged modus operandi emerged during his bail hearing at the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court when state prosecutor Robin Lewis said that restaurant video footage captured him using a device hidden in a bag to skim the card of an unsuspecting customer.

“The (victim) had dined at the restaurant‚ he then requested the bill. (Sulaiman) then approached the table and the card was swiped on two occasions using an electronic device. On both occasions the transaction was unsuccessful‚” he told the court.

 “The accused then left the table and returned with another device. The card was then used again and the transaction was successful.

“A few days later‚ the witness discovered that numerous transactions had been made from his account and the amount of plus minus R60‚000 had been withdrawn‚” Lewis said.

The Malawian national who‚ according to evidence presented by Lewis‚ was working and living in the country illegally‚ was released on R2‚000 bail on Monday.

Café Caprice owner David Raad said that none of his management team had expected an incident of card skimming to take place at the popular restaurant. He had even sent a news clipping explaining how card skimming could happen to his management team.

“It’s been an emotional trip for all the staff‚ and it happened so out of the blue as Ishmail had worked for us for a number of years‚” he said.

 “In the 15 years we have been running‚ nothing like this has ever happened before although any incidents‚ as with this particular case‚ is dealt with seriously as the issue is prevalent throughout the industry.

“He seemed to have a great character and was excellent with clients‚ and that is why it came as such a shock to the team‚” said Raad.

The Directorate of Priority Crime Investigation – the Hawks — in collaboration with the banking fraternity on Tuesday said they were extremely concerned at the increasing number of cases related to card skimming

While the crime occurred predominantly in restaurants‚ Hawks spokesman Captain Lloyd Ramovha said instances of skimming also occurred at ATM’s.

“We would like to urge the public to adhere to safety mechanisms at all times to ensure that they do not fall victims to this crime. Only with heightened awareness and taking ownership of one’s financial transaction history can we make big inroads in countering this criminal phenomena. The truth is the criminals profit on the general public’s ignorance‚” he said.

Tawanda Chirume‚ a 24-year-old waiter at a restaurant in Grabouw in the Western Cape‚ was arrested last month for unauthorised possession of a point of sale device‚ used to process electronic payments.

According to the Hawks‚ he allegedly unlawfully processed customer payments using the device‚ which did not doesn’t belong to the restaurant. The restaurant lost more than R100‚ 000.

Ramovha said that when a card is swiped through a skimming device‚ the details on the magnetic stripe of the card are recorded on the device.

 “With the right software‚ details can then be transferred from the device to a computer and then encoded (written) onto any other card‚ even onto (a blank card)‚” he said. “White plastic is a blank card with a magnetic stripe – the form all cards start out as before the colors‚ logos and printing are added‚” he said.

 “Restaurants also have a responsibility to vet their staff properly as these occurrences are bound to affect their businesses negatively.

“Without necessarily painting every waiter with the same brush‚ as much as there are downright shoddy elements operating within the hospitality industry‚ there are equally some good ones with no ill intentions‚ who are out there making an honest living‚” added Ramovha.

Sulaiman’s case will return to court on August 18.

How to avoid being scammed — tips from The South African Banking Risk Information Centre:

- Review your account statements on a timely basis; query disputed transactions with your bank immediately.

- When shopping online‚ only place orders with your card on a secure website.

- Do not send e-mails that quote your card number and expiry date.

- Ensure that you get your own card back after every purchase.

- Report lost and stolen cards immediately.

- Destroy your credit card receipts before discarding them.

- Never let the card out of your sight when making payments.

- If you have a debit‚ cheque and credit card‚ don’t choose the same PIN for all of them‚ so that if you lose one‚ the others will still be safe.

- Always check transaction slips for correct purchase amounts before you sign them.

- Keep your transaction slips and check them against your statement to spot any suspicious transactions and query them immediately.

- While transacting always keep an eye on the ATM Card slot to ensure that your card is not taken out‚ skimmed and replaced without your knowledge.

- Subscribe to your Bank’s SMS notification services; this will inform you of any transactional activity on your account.