Pair accused of $8m scam face dozens of charges

Court papers say man and woman used forged documents in investment ruse

An Auckland man and woman are facing nearly 70 charges over an alleged $8 million investment and shares ruse. Police say the pair used forged documents from several companies, including a leading Kiwi engineering and design consultancy.

The alleged scam is also said to have included fake invoices, emails and a land title from accounting, property development, bio-research and law firms to enable the deception, court documents reveal.

Dozens of charges were laid by the police financial crime unit against Jian Long, 34, and Wen Ting Zhang, 36, in the Auckland District Court on Friday. Long faces 33 charges, while Zhang has 35 charges.

The Herald understands the alleged offending amounts to just short of $8m, and police say further arrests and charges cannot be ruled out.

Long and Zhang’s offending is said to have occurred between November 2015 and August last year, according to the court documents.

The charges include allegations the pair used forged invoices totalling millions of dollars from land development company Wow Development Limited, law firm Amicus Law, and geotechnical and environmental consultancy company Soil & Rock.

They are also accused of using five fake invoices worth $1.8m purporting to be from Harrison Grierson — one of the country’s leading engineering and design consultancies.

Forged invoices from central Auckland law firm Duthie Whyte were also allegedly used, while the pair are further accused of causing a legal executive at a North Shore law firm to act on fake shareholding documents.

Many of the allegedly forged invoices had been sent to a North Shore chartered accountancy firm to be processed, while fake loan documents in excess of more than $1.2m were also allegedly produced at the company.

A fake invoice from property valuation firm Simon Head & Associates was also allegedly used.

The duo are further charged with using a forged Land Information New Zealand (Linz) title document.

Linz is the government department which conducts geographical information and surveying functions, handles land titles, and manages Crown land and property.

Long and Zhang also allegedly sent fake emails to request the release of funds held by Amicus Law, while one charge relates to the pair allegedly obtaining a single loan of $10m in the name of Wow Development.

Another charge accuses the pair of causing false entries to be entered into the accounting records of Wow Development, showing payments of more than $2.8m as being genuinely paid to suppliers, while also omitting a receipt of $1.2m to a law firm.

Zhang alone is accused of using a forged document which she signed using a power of attorney from another person, authorising a law firm to pay more than $1.2m to Long and another.

One charge also relates to the alleged forged sale and purchase of shares for $2.8m.

The occupation of neither Long nor Zhang is listed in the court documents, but Zhang is listed as living in a plush Remuera street, while Long lives in the North Shore suburb of Greenhithe.

Companies Office records, however, show Long was a former director and shareholder of Wow Development.

The pair are yet to enter a plea and are due back in court next year.