13 arrests as scam steals millions

Police have arrested 13 people for money laundering and are actively searching for others as investigations continue into a sophisticated phone scam that’s cost Kiwis millions of dollars. This year the police Auckland city fraud unit launched Operation Deadwood, after receiving reports of people who lost tens of thousands of dollars to phone scammers falsely claiming to be from Spark and/or the police.

Over the past few months, police have received more than 100 reports from people across New Zealand who have lost money totalling more than $2.5 million.

Detective Sergeant Kevin Blackman said those figures were likely to be the tip of the iceberg, with police believing the actual number of victims to be several hundred.

“We know there are victims that are either too embarrassed to report their losses or have directly contacted their banks rather than contact police, so we don’t know the exact scale of this offending,” he said.

“The victims in these cases have often lost tens of thousands of dollars, with one victim losing around a quarter of a million dollars to the scammers.

“In many of these cases, the victims are told to download software from a website which has then given the scammers access to the victim’s computer, where they have unwittingly transferred funds out of the individual’s bank accounts.”

Since July, police have arrested 12 men and one woman, aged between 21 and 33, for money laundering. Their cases are being heard in court.

Blackman said the arrests had been made in Auckland, Hamilton and Napier.

“I want to reassure the community that police treat these scams seriously,” he said.

Police are seeking the public’s help in finding three men who have warrants to arrest for money laundering in relation to the inquiry.

They are Manish Khan, 24, Tushar Prabhakar, 21, and Hitesh Sharma, 22.

“These three men are believed to be in the Auckland area and have links in particular to South and East Auckland,” Blackman said.

“They are also known to frequent the Auckland Airport area and Auckland Central, including SkyCity. We want to hear immediately from anyone who has seen these individuals.”

Blackman said police are concerned they are still continuing to receive reports of people falling victims to this scam.

“The victims are always rung on their landlines at home. This is an important reminder to never give your personal details over the phone to a stranger. If you think a call may be suspicious, hang up immediately.”

Never give your personal details over the phone to a stranger. Detective Sergeant Kevin Blackman