DIA Warns Auckland Real Estate for Lax Money Laundering Prevention

The department of Internal Affairs has issued a formal warning to Auckland’s real estate company for slacking in its efforts to prevent money laundering.

Hills Real Estate was found to have been in breach of anti-money laundering laws and counter-terrorism financing laws because it failed to ensure that its customers would not be exposed to suspicious activities or maintain adequate records, as required by the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Act 2009.

On May 8th, the Department of Transportation published a warning informing the company of these concerns and said it would monitor the company closely as it addresses these concerns. It is widely known that criminals of all kinds use real estate in order to launder large amounts of money, according to AML and CFT Group director Mike Stone.

There were 100 properties worth an estimated $73.7 million seized by the police in 2021, an increase of 51 properties worth $55.7 million in the previous year when 49 properties were seized. During the past two months, two warnings have been issued to a real estate company by the department, Stone said this is the second time the department has done so.

Stone stated, “Real estate agencies should take note of the two recent warnings and expect stronger action in the future from DIA for serious breaches of the AML/CFT Act.” A comment has been sought by Hills Real Estate regarding the recent warnings.

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