Chinese restaurants in Auckland are being targeted by a group-booking scam orchestrated by overseas fraudsters, with one business losing $15,000.
Police said it had received multiple reports of offshore scam centres calling restaurants and asking to make a large booking.
The scammers, pretending to be from New Zealand, tell the eatery they'll only book if the business pre-pays for a large order of abalone (pāua) from a supplier in China.
Once the payment is made to a bank account, the scammers send a fake transfer confirmation reimbursing the restaurant.
Police said one restaurant fell for the scam and lost $15,000 offshore.
Detective Senior Sergeant Craig Bolton said Chinese restaurants had been targeted so far, but warned the scam could easily spread further heading into Christmas.
“It’s coming to a busy time of year, so a phone call looking to secure a booking for a large function could seem appetising,” Bolton said.
“You need to be extremely cautious if you’re being asked to pre-pay or transfer a large amount of money to a bank account.”
He urged businesses not to engage and to use safeguards to protect themselves when booking events.
“If bookings require pre-payment or transferring of large amounts of money, we will always advise conducting this arrangement in person.”
SHARE ME