Latest fromFraud

Property developer guilty of fraud
A bankrupt property developer who used fronts and false information to borrow money as part of a $50 million loan scheme has been found guilty this morning.

Beware of eBay system sales con
Netsafe is getting a large number of reports where offenders try to use an eBay "protected programme" to obtain money.

Couple accused of benefit fraud to get re-trial
A jury for a trial of two men accused of failing to declare their de-facto relationship in order to claim benefits has failed to reach a verdict on all but one charge.

Labour candidate guilty of using forged documents
A Labour Party candidate in the first Super City elections has been found guilty of two counts of using forged documents but has been acquitted on 18 other electoral fraud allegations.

Web users caught up in ransom scam
Some NZ computer users have paid $500 ransom demands after finding their machines encrypted and a ransom note demanding cash.

Madoff victim, 90, still hurting
'It's frustrating as hell,' says a 90-year-old victim of Ponzi fraudster Bernie Madoff, who's one of legions of investors still hurting five years on.

Scam Watch - Dec 8
A Napier retailer warns a man claiming to be from "Google business" is offering a preferential listing for $295 - which must be paid via paypal. Ignore calls like this.

Boscawen: Banks saga won't end Act
Act Leader John Banks' decision to leave Parliament at the next election under the cloud of electoral fraud charges is not the end of the party, its president John Boscawen says.

SFO drops fraud charges
Agency failed to consider key evidence in $1.7 billion South Canterbury Finance investigation.

Fast-track plan for Banks' trial
The High Court has ruled embattled Act Party leader John Banks should stand trial on electoral fraud charges next year but the trial will likely be fast-tracked.

Madoff's right hand man on the stand
The way Frank DiPascali tells it, Bernard Madoff planted the seeds of deception for his $17 billion Ponzi scheme back in the 1970s.

Damien Grant: Someone must have known Ross was a fraudster
Ross consistently showed good returns over two decades, even through the global financial crisis. It's incredible that with nearly half a billion of non-existent funds under his control, no one suspected a thing.

Finance asset freeze first for police
Police asset freezing action against two jailed Capital + Merchant directors is unprecedented.

Elders slumps to $568m loss on restructure costs
Australian-based agribusiness Elders has fallen to an annual loss of A$505 million ($568 million), but says big costs from its restructuring are behind it.

Record term for Ponzi swindler
Ponzi-scheme operator David Ross, who committed one of NZ's biggest financial swindles, has been handed more jail time than anyone else to face a Serious Fraud Office prosecution.

Ross sentence 'too lenient'
The man behind NZ's largest Ponzi scheme has been sentenced to 10 years and 10 months in jail - a punishment deemed too lenient by one of his victims.

The $1.7m scratchie scam
A retired policeman and a chartered accountant are among 55 New Zealanders fleeced for $1.7 million by a Malaysia-based scam.

Welfare snooping bill criticised
New powers allowing welfare officials to secretly approach beneficiaries' banks or workplaces if they suspected them of committing fraud are being questioned.

Global money laundering scams hit NZ
Business owners are being warned to watch out for overseas money laundering scams, which are targeting New Zealand's small businesses.

Rockforte Finance director gets jail time
A director of failed firm Rockforte Finance has been sentenced to four years in jail while another got 11 months' home detention and 200 hours' community work

Accountant's $280k donation fraud
An accountant has been struck off for scamming Inland Revenue out of $280,000 by doctoring his employer's tax returns to gain false donation rebates.