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Supplied
Examples of the envelopes, stamps and fraudulent prize tickets widely distributed throughout the country by mail in the 2019 mail scam.
A scam which sends “winning” fake scratchies through the post from Malaysia has resurfaced in New Zealand after a four-year hiatus.
The scam, known as the Malaysian postal scam, has fleeced millions of dollars from unsuspecting Kiwis, including in 2013 when a retired police officer and chartered accountant fell victim. One victim was scammed of $18,000 trying to have her prize released.
Further scams from Malaysia were being delivered by NZ Post in 2016 and 2019.
The Postal Workers Union of Aotearoa (PWUA) co-national president John Maynard said the scam mail was easily identifiable – a white envelope with colourful Malaysian stamps, and address printed with the family name first.
This year the scam mail is being sent by registered mail requiring the recipient to sign for what appears to be an important mail item. It contains notice of a six-figure US dollar “second prize”.
An NZ Post spokesperson said it was aware of the concerns raised by the PWUA and were actively investigating.
”We will communicate an update to customers as soon as possible,” she said.
RNZ
New Zealanders have lost $23 million to scams in the last 18 months, with the majority of victims staying silent about being duped. (Video first published October 2020).
In 2019, a PWUA official visiting Malaysia on annual leave tracked the scam company to an empty section in the centre of Kuala Lumpur, but the company was now using the new 40-storey Integra Tower office block of the Malaysian Government’s Pension Fund.
The Postal Workers Union hand-delivered a complaint to the Commissioner of Police in November 2019 and an investigation was begun by the Fraud Squad.
The Department of Internal Affairs maintained an extensive list of scratchie scams under the postal scams section on its website.
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