Auckland police hunt man linked to alleged $1.8 million money laundering

Police are searching for a man linked to nearly $2 million in alleged money laundering and are urging the public to be cautious.

Ayom Wek, 31, has several warrants for his arrest in connection with what police have described as “significant fraud cases” involving innocent members of the public.

The City of Auckland Financial Crime Unit is therefore looking for him. Police said the total amount of violations to date is $1.8 million.

Detective Senior Sergeant Craig Bolton, of Auckland City Police CIB, said officers investigating a term deposit scam identified Wek as part of their inquiries.

“At this point, we have received five reports about this man, each with hundreds of thousands of dollars behind them.

“As part of our ongoing investigations we are now investigating his whereabouts in relation to these significant reports of fraud and arrest warrants have been granted.”

Police said they did not believe Wek was still actively committing money laundering crimes.

However, they are urging the public to exercise caution, Bolton said.

“We continue to urge anyone seeking financial advice or wishing to invest in a term deposit to proceed with caution. »

Wek is believed to be based in the central Auckland region and is still in the country.

A border alert is in place in case he attempts to leave New Zealand.

Can you help ? Anyone with information that could help authorities with their investigation is asked to contact police on 105.