Media couple victims of bizarre banking scam

Mike Hosking and Kate Hawkesby. Photo / Herald on Sunday

A "large Polynesian woman" has been trying to pass herself off as the daughter of Pakeha media personality Kate Hawkesby in order to cash cheques worth thousands of dollars.

And on two occasions, she has succeeded.

Hawkesby's partner, radio host Mike Hosking, yesterday told Newstalk ZB listeners that the woman had been questioned by a South Auckland bank teller while trying to cash a $6000 cheque on Saturday.

"What happened was - it was very exciting - the bank rings up on Saturday and they inform us that there's a woman in the bank in South Auckland presenting a cheque claiming to be the daughter of Kate Hawkesby," Hosking said.

"The great advantage at this point is that the bank teller ... knows that Kate doesn't have a large Polynesian daughter, so there's your first clue."

Hosking said the teller went away to phone the police and the woman "was getting a bit edgy, thinking that she might have been busted.

"Then she runs from the bank, the police start chasing her. It's all go in South Auckland on Saturday afternoon."

He said he owed the bank teller - whose name was Lincoln - "a debt of gratitude and probably a bottle of wine".

The bank also phoned Hosking, who went online to check his account.

It was then he discovered the woman had already cashed two other cheques totalling $6200 - one only two days earlier.

"And then you would ask yourself the question, what bank allows somebody to walk in with a cheque for $3000 and go 'Can I please cash that?' And they go 'Sure'.

"So I'm down the dunny for $6200 and she's trying to do me for $12,200."

Hosking said the police were still looking for the woman, but they knew who she was.

"They've got her on CCTV, they've got some ID. The police are going to hopefully round her up and put her in jail for a very long period of time."

The bank had "been really good about it", Hosking said.

"I've got my money back and all is well in the world."