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Woman sentenced in false refugee claims case

A migrant has been sentenced in the Auckland District Court to 11 months home detention for her role in an immigration fraud scheme where she filed false refugee claims on behalf of other migrants already in New Zealand.

30 April 2024
2 minute read

Nurul Syahirah Binti Noor Azman was found guilty in November 2022 on 5 charges of supplying false or misleading information under section 342(1)(b) of the Immigration Act 2009. On 23 February 2024 Azman was sentenced to 11 months home detention.

Azman’s offending occurred in 2020 and saw her involved in the submission of false refugee claims with Immigration New Zealand (INZ). Azman’s offending was detected following an INZ operation in the Bay of Plenty looking into allegations of migrant worker exploitation in the horticulture industry.

Immigration investigators discovered migrant workers were being encouraged to falsely claim refugee status to obtain work visas. Azman charged workers up to $600 each to facilitate these fake applications.

Statements obtained from workers interviewed revealed an individual was responsible for creating a ‘story’ which would then be used to make the refugee claim and be submitted to INZ.

National Manager Immigration Investigations Jason Perry says the sentence holds Azman accountable in what was a planned attempt to manipulate the immigration system while concurrently making additional income for herself.

“This sentence sends a message to people that this sort of cynical and devious behaviour will not be tolerated and will be uncovered by INZ. When cases such as this one appear we will take all steps available to us to criminally prosecute the individual."

“Filing, and supporting the filing of, fraudulent refugee claims is an egregious abuse of the immigration system and it diverts time and effort away from processing valid refugee claims,” Perry says.

INZ encourages anyone who knows of immigration offending to report it immediately. Cases can be reported to MBIE’s contact centre on 0800 20 90 20. Alternatively, they can be reported to New Zealand Police or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Enforcement options for Immigration New Zealand include informing and education, warnings, infringement notices and prosecution. A prosecution will be considered where there is sufficient evidence and it is considered to be in the public interest to prosecute.

Queries can be directed to 021 057 5714 or media@mbie.govt.nz