A man has been charged locally with money laundering following multiple reports of a false investment scam circulating New Zealand.

Police have received multiple reports of a false term deposit scam where the offender/s claim to be investment advisors, receiving significant amounts of money from victims.

Scams of this nature are often internationally based and utilise New Zealanders as mules giving their scam a sense of legitimacy.

The investigation into this series of scams has resulted in a 52 year old Whanganui man being arrested.

He was due to appear in Whanganui District Court today on five charges of money laundering.

Enquiries into this scam continue.

It is important to be vigilant when online and carry out measures to prevent yourself from potentially being scammed.

There are several steps people can take to protect themselves from similar scams:

• Scams continue to evolve and use more sophisticated methods to deceive the public – the age-old saying “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”, is a good rule of thumb.

• We encourage people to research ‘broker’ companies online before engaging with them.

• Scammers will pose as brokers for a number of established banks.

• Check out the Financial Markets Authority’s website as they publish the names of suspicious companies on their website.

• Always talk to your bank or another financial professional before making large online investments.

• If returns are higher than usually seen, it’s probably the sign of a red flag.

Be sure to do your research and make sure the website is legitimate.