I gave myself a fake name on Facebook and found my auntie's killer

Daily Mirror

2 days ago

A new documentary on Prime Video shows exactly how
A woman, unable to travel due to a severe health condition, managed to assist in tracking down and apprehending her aunt's killer thanks to a message sent on Facebook.
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Christine Robinson, originally from Liverpool, was discovered dead at her game lodge in South Africa in 2014. At the time, relatives alleged that money intended for staff wages was missing from the scene, and authorities informed them that the 59 year old former teacher had been stabbed to death.
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The news was a devastating blow to her family, including her niece Lehanne Sergison from Kent. Now, Lehanne, along with some of Christine's friends and the officers who investigated at the time, have participated in a new documentary detailing her crucial role in capturing the murderer.
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The Facebook Honeytrap Catching A Killer is released on Prime Video and demonstrates how Lehanne fought for justice despite being housebound in the UK. In the documentary, Lehanne reveals that her severe asthma prevented her from travelling to South Africa following her aunt's death, even though she wished to be there.
Her condition required hospital treatment every few months, making flying impossible. Her uncle and father travelled without her, reports the Liverpool Echo.
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However, she remained in contact with one of Christine's friends and learned that the prime suspect in the case, Andrew Ndlovu, who was employed by her aunt at the lodge, had disappeared.
It was believed he had returned to his home country of Zimbabwe before making his way back to South Africa later on. Lehanne grew increasingly exasperated with the sluggish progress of the murder probe and resolved to take matters into her own hands.
She created a bogus Facebook profile pretending to be a South African flight attendant named Missy Falcao, and started collecting intelligence about the suspect. She even chatted with his mates using this fake identity to make it appear genuine.
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Eventually she sent a direct message to Ndlovu saying: "Hello handsome, you've got sexy eyes."
She confessed she felt alarmed after sending it but he replied: "Thanks...you are 1 in a million."
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At one stage she even arranged a phoney date hoping police would nab him. Finally, she posted some of the details she had gathered publicly on social media in a plea to help her pursue justice, despite the Foreign Office warning her against it.
Fresh photographs of the suspect were posted online and others started getting involved to help hunt him down and assist in bringing him to justice, all triggered by Lehanne's Facebook messages.
Ndlovu, who switched his name to Andrea Imbayarwo in his attempt to evade capture, was found guilty of rape and murder and given a double life sentence for his crimes in 2022.
The Facebook Honeytrap Catching A Killer is streaming on Prime Video.