Mine jobs 'a scam', court told

Frank Yeates.

A man facing charges over an alleged bogus company for jobseekers looking for work in Australian mines had his scheme endorsed by a fake international group whose initials spelled "Pay Frank and Dee The Money", a court has been told.

Frank Allan Yeates, 61, has pleaded not guilty in the Hamilton District Court to three charges of making a false statement as a promoter and one of fraudulently carrying out a business.

The Crown alleges that between February 28 and June 30, 2012, Yeates ran a website called AAAjobforyou NZ Ltd and falsely claimed it had positions in the mining industry.

It says Yeates also wrongly said the company was part of an international group known as "PF and DTM International" and made a false statement on printed AAAjobforyou receipts that the funds it received from prospective employees were being deposited into a trust fund.

The Crown is also trying to prove that Yeates was knowingly party to AAAjobforyou NZ Ltd and carried on the business with intent to defraud the public.

Crown prosecutor Rebecca Mann said applicants would pay money to Yeates' company for services over four "stages" with at least one man told he would "definitely" secure work at the end of the process.

The stages included attending seminars and having their resumes "polished" for $390 and another arranging Skype interviews with prospective employers for $300. The final stage cost $1900 and involved flights to the Gold Coast and accommodation there before the workers were taken to their new jobs.

Ms Mann said 148 people paid Yeates after he held introductory seminars. A further 50 people paid $300 for stage two. None made it as far as stage three or four and none received the jobs they were promised.

"The promises were not kept and work was not obtained ... simply put, the Crown says that this was a scam."

She said Yeates' claims that his entity was part of the PF and DTM International group were also fraudulent. The court later heard how he explained to a former employee the initials were an abbreviation that said "Pay Frank and Dee The Money".