Scammers leech $50k from Wairarapa

One scam involved a Facebook relationship where an overseas scammer lied to the victim about a parcel containing expensive gifts, which needed money to be sent to ensure delivery.

May was a bad month for Wairarapa victims of overseas scams.

Constable Shayne Nolan says in the last month over $50,000 has been sent overseas, with no chance of it being recovered.

He said the scams were carefully constructed by experts in electronic media.

"They will create fake websites, fake businesses, fake credentials, and fake social media pages," he said.

"They make contact via social media or online advertisements.

"As social media gains in popularity and relationships develop more distantly, it becomes easier to fall into these traps."

One scam involved a victim who built up a relationship with a person via Facebook.

The scammer convinced the victim that he had sent a parcel containing expensive gifts and gave the victim a tracking number and website.

The "parcel" was then delayed in Malaysian customs and the victim was required to pay to have it released.

As many as 10,000 people around the world were victims of the scam, which had been operating since 2011, Mr Nolan said.

Another scam reported last week involved a job vacancy advertised in a community newspaper for a caretaker/cleaner.

People who applied via email received a letter from a person purporting to have got a job from the United Nations and who was moving to New Zealand.

He was prepared to send a cheque for a large sum to the applicant for furniture to set up his new residence.

There would then be complications with the cheque and the applicant would be required to send money to fix the problems.

Although Wairarapa police received about one complaint every month, there was a significant number of people not reporting scams to police.

"It's embarrassing - it makes it difficult for them to report, especially with the first type of scam - there's a romantic link to it. They appeal to people who are vulnerable."

It was not just elderly people falling prey to these scams, Mr Nolan said, with well-educated middle-aged people, and in some cases teenagers, victims.

"These are not financially well-off people. Quite often people will get into debt and suffer financial hardship."

Mr Nolan said investigating complaints was difficult, with obscure money trails, false profiles, and limited overseas law enforcement capabilities.

"There is no real chance of recovering money once sent overseas."