Mortgage suspect hit with $1.3m bill

Zamir Zane Hussain. Photo / Facebook

A banker at the centre of an alleged multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud has been ordered to pay nearly $1.3 million in damages to his former employer.

Zamir Hussain, who is understood to have moved to London, was found in January to have repeatedly breached ANZ National Bank's credit risk policy in his work as a mortgage manager.

The Employment Relations Authority earlier ordered the 31-year-old to pay $54,000 to the bank after it said he had authorised 18 mortgage loans worth far more than each property's value, costing it more than $3.5 million.

He had received $10,000 a month commission between May and July 2007 from what the ERA said was an "elaborate scheme" by borrowers who have been referred to the Serious Fraud Office.

When the $54,000 payment was ordered, ANZ reserved the right to make a further claim once it had established the full extent of its losses.

It lodged an application seeking $1.28 million in damages from Hussain, saying this was the value of excess it would be required to pay under an insurance policy if criminal convictions were secured.

Authority member Robin Arthur said ANZ fraud investigator Trudie Smith gave evidence of the bank's losses arising from seven of the 18 transactions for which Hussain had been found liable.

In these, money was lent to three borrowers who were buying seven North Shore properties, and resulted in losses totalling $1.66 million.

Mr Arthur said "Borrower A" was given loans totalling $511,000 to buy a Birkdale property and $760,000 for a Chatswood property.

The mortgagee sales for both raised $835,000 in total and after deduction of legal and other sale expenses, the loss to the bank was $621,621.

"Borrower B" was given a $995,200 loan to buy a Paremoremo property which brought $670,000 at mortgagee sale. After expenses, the loss to ANZ was $440,429.

"Borrower C" was given $420,000 to buy a Beachhaven property and $796,000 for a Rothesay Bay property.

The mortgagee sales made $756,000, resulting in an after-expenses loss to the bank of $605,968.

Mr Arthur said that during the first ERA investigation Hussain, who grew up in Papatoetoe, was sent an email at a Brisbane address he had provided.

He then gave a new address, saying he was moving to London and would not return for at least three years.

The bank's application was emailed to him but he did not respond.

As well as the $1,282,051 in damages, Hussain was also ordered to pay costs of $4000.