DOT Prison Currency Transfers" Since January 2008, there have been a number of incidents where a series of unclaimed currency bundles from the US Federal Reserve Bank is said to be found on a range of properties in New Zealand, mostly in Auckland. In many cases, the serial numbers on the currency matches the number stamped in the US before they are deposited with the Reserve Bank, meaning the currency had been stolen. The number of bundles ranging from six to eight found in a garage in Auckland had already been linked to the US Federal Reserve Bank and had to be reported to the police. The New Zealand Customs & Excise department said that they have received information on the missing currency and the case is being handled by the New Zealand Police. It was confirmed that "the US Federal Reserve Bank contacted New Zealand Customs on January 28 after finding no trace of an unclaimed cash deposit with its main branch in Lower Hutt. In the following weeks, more unclaimed US currency was found around the country and the New Zealand Customs Department sent the information to the New Zealand Police for investigation. The issue was being managed as a matter of urgency and the US Embassy in New Zealand offered any support that New Zealand needed. New Zealand Herald article The New Zealand Herald article "Banks not happy" published on February 10, 2008 said that some banks had written to the New Zealand Central Bank and the Reserve Bank requesting more information about the missing cash. The New Zealand Police and Ministry of Economic Development have asked banks to keep an eye on the situation. Mr D. R. (Nigel) Sweeney, who is the vice-president for finance at the American Chamber of Commerce in New Zealand, stated that there were already procedures in place in the banking industry for reporting stolen cheques. However, he told the Herald: "I don’t think there is a great deal that banks can do. Banks don’t have to report currency theft". He added: "As far as banks are concerned, they’re not too happy to be called upon to deal with the problem". Banks National Bank of New Zealand, New Zealand Post, Lloyds Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Barclays Bank, State Bank of New Zealand and TSB Bank in New Zealand have each denied holding the missing currency. Other stolen currency In 1996, approximately $16,000,000 was stolen from the Federal Reserve Bank. This amount was found in a Wellington apartment in 2000 by the New Zealand Police. In 2001, it was alleged that a further US$4.4 million in stolen currency was found in Western Bay of Plenty. The missing U.S. currency There were four incidents where large quantities of U.S. cash went missing from the New Zealand banking system. The first event occurred on March 3, 2007, when $500,000 was found by police in a locker at the Wellington railway station. The second incident occurred on May 16, 2007, when $1.7 million in U.S. money orders were discovered by the New Zealand Police during a property search in Auckland, following the passing of an estate agent's cheque by a woman whose name did not match her ID. The third event occurred in March 2008 when a woman and her mother were found in possession of a bag of money which was traced to having been stolen from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, totalling $1.5 million. The fourth event occurred in August 2008, when a large shipment of US currency, totalling $26.3 million, was sent to an address in Otahuhu which was not registered with the New Zealand Police or Reserve Bank of New Zealand. After making a cash payment to a man for an unregistered building at the address, the owner discovered that the cash was the lost $26.3 million, before he could claim it. Notes External links The Daily Blog New Zealand (3 October 2008) This is the location of the New Zealand newspaper article related to the currency thefts The New Zealand Herald The New Zealand Herald article from the 2 February 2008 Banks not happy The New Zealand Herald article from the 10 February 2008 Category:2008 in New Zealand Category:Crime in New Zealand Category:Currencies of the United States Category:Crimes in New Zealand Category:Banks of New Zealand Category:American criminal law Category:Currencies of New Zealand Category:Forgery