Police on trail of cash, cars

Police are moving to seize property, cars and cash worth $8.6 million from a couple associated with corruption at Auckland Transport.

Stephen Borlase, a former director of Projenz, which undertook contract work for Auckland Transport, was jailed earlier this year, along with Murray John Noone, a former director of transportation at the Rodney District Council and later an AT employee.

Auckland Transport later revealed six other staff left their jobs after investigations into the corruption began.

Police have not named who they are targeting but said they launched civil proceedings under the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act and were looking for restraining orders against a 53-year-old man and his wife ‘‘for his criminal activities relating to bribery and corruption’’.

Court records show that Borlase is due to appear in the High Court in Auckland on the same day the civil proceedings are scheduled to come before the court: October 11.

Police are chasing property including real estate in Mt Eden, a commercial property and a beach house in the Coromandel, motor vehicles including a 2015 Mercedes, Jeep Cherokee and a classic Ford Fairlane and cash.

It follows a successful Serious Fraud Office prosecution of several people associated with AT – the country’s largest bribery case.

The Serious Fraud Office warned at the time the case had not been closed and corruption required a toxic culture to grow.

The offending took place between 2006 and 2013 and related to roading project consultation contracts Projenz carried out.