SFO appeals for help identifying trio in $5m mortgage fraud case

The Serious Fraud Office is appealing for help to identify three people connected to a suspected criminal syndicate accused of stealing identities to fraudulently obtain close to $5 million in mortgages. The agency released images of two men and a woman it believes may have information relevant to its investigation. The trio are not among those already charged. Two women were arrested after a search warrant in Auckland's Epsom last week and appeared in Auckland District Court on Wednesday facing four joint charges of obtaining by deception. Both have interim name suppression and are set to appear again on August 26. The SFO alleges the syndicate stole the identities of at least three people to take out mortgages against their properties without their knowledge, netting close to $5 million in fraudulent lending. The alleged scheme went to considerable lengths to appear legitimate. The syndicate is accused of forging a New Zealand driver licence, residential tenancy records and immigration documents, and using foreign passports. They also allegedly used fictitious addresses, a PO Box, phone numbers and email addresses, and opened bank accounts in victims' names to receive the loan funds. The SFO said it believes the three unidentified individuals frequent the Albany and St Lukes areas in Auckland.