Operation Cargo: Police arrest West Auckland duo after text scam raid uncovers firearms, ammunition

A pair accused of running a text message scam operation from West Auckland have been arrested after a multi-agency raid led to the discovery of two firearms and ammunition.

As part of a scam disruption operation, dubbed Cargo, police and the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) carried out a search warrant at a Henderson address last week — from where spam messages were allegedly being sent.

“In this case, our enquiries identified they had allegedly been utilising the ‘Hi Mum’, banking and Netflix scams to try to con unsuspecting victims,” Detective Senior Sergeant Ryan Bunting of the Waitematā District fraud team said.

“These text scams use any number of ruses to draw people in. No matter what method, the result is always heartache and loss for those who fall victim to it.”

Bunting said the search warrant resulted in a range of Sim cards and phones allegedly used in the offending being found.

A sawn-off shotgun, a Ruger 270 bolt-action rifle, and ammunition were also recovered.

Two men found at the address are now before the Waitākere District Court, Bunting said.

The pair, aged 20 and 51, have been jointly charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm and one count of unlawful possession of ammunition.

The 20-year-old was also charged with possessing equipment capable of facilitating crimes.

Bunting said inquiries were continuing and more arrests were possible.

Police were working with other agencies to target similar offending.

“We know this sort of scam is arranged by transnational organised crime groups, who utilise local actors to carry out their deeds.”

Department of Internal Affairs digital messaging manager Joe Teo said collaboration was key to detecting, disrupting and preventing the spread of harmful digital messages.

“This operation demonstrated how by working together we can successfully protect New Zealanders from criminals who seek to steal their private information and money.

“The discovery of firearms during the search warrant shows that these are serious offenders who are targeting New Zealanders.”