Auckland man convicted for taking $136k out of NZ

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An Auckland man had the equivalent of NZ$136,452 in Chinese Yuan seized by Customs when he tried to take the cash out of New Zealand without declaring it.

Xiaosheng Yu, 59, was fined $800 in the Auckland District Court today for attempting to take the cash out of New Zealand in November 2012, Customs said.

He was caught out when about to board a flight from Auckland to Hong Kong when a customs cash dog, Zen, sniffed out money in a bag carried by Yu's wife, Customs said.

It was the first Customs intercept by a cash-detecting pooch.

Passengers are required under law to declare cash of $NZ10,000 or more when travelling on international flights. If not, the cash can be seized and face forfeiture.

"It's not illegal to carry large sums of cash but it must be declared so we can verify that the money is legitimate and for legitimate purposes. Customs has various translations of the forms and translators available if language is an issue. Movement of cash can and has been linked to money laundering and organised crime - this is why we treat the matter so seriously. Those who don't declare their cash face prosecution, and/or lose their money on top of it," Customs Manager Investigations Maurice O'Brien said.