Getty/Thomas Trutschel/Photothek
Anthony Kiro told a Tinder date he’d invested money on her behalf and she felt obliged repay him, despite not having agreed to it (file photo).
An Auckland man cheated his Tinder date out of thousands of dollars by tempting her with a tenfold return on an investment that did not actually exist.
Anthony Waitiri Bill Kiro, 42, appeared in the Hamilton District Court on Wednesday, where he pleaded guilty to a representative charge of theft by a person in a special relationship, and a single charge of failing to comply with a Covid-19 order.
Kiro was in Hamilton when he met his victim through the online dating app Tinder in early January 2021, the summary of facts on the case reveals.
They did not physically meet until February 12 of that year, but at that rendezvous he told her that he worked full-time making cryptocurrency investments for clients.
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During their date Kiro proposed she make extra money by investing through him. He followed that up the next day, when he messaged the woman, telling her he had invested $5000 on her behalf.
The woman had not actually agreed to such a thing, but felt obliged to pay him back.
Three days later the pair met again, so Kiro could “explain” the investment, and on the day the woman paid $5000 into his bank account, on the agreement that she would receive $38,711 as a return on that investment on March 14, 2021.
Kiro told her he would email her a contract and a receipt – but it never arrived.
On February 22 he went to the woman’s home. While there, he put documents onto her computer and downloaded the “Delta” application onto her mobile phone.
Christel Yardley/Stuff
Kiro appeared in Hamilton District Court and pleaded guilty to theft by a person in a special relationship, and failing to comply with a Covid-19 order.
He led his victim to believe that a large sum on money – $56,645.75 – shown on the app was what had become of her $5000 investment.
Later that he persuaded her to give him an additional $2000, promising a large return on investment just four days later.
February 26 arrived and went and the woman received no such payment.
As the summary notes, “the defendant made excuses as to why the victim had not received her money”.
He later had an explanation for the police: He had used her money for gambling.
The Covid-19 charge arose from events in September last year, when the Auckland region was still subject to a level 4 lockdown following the outbreak of the Delta strain in New Zealand the preceding month.
On September 13 Kiro had attempted to drive out of the Auckland level 4 zone. He was issued an infringement notice and directed to remain in the region.
About two days later he succeeded in getting through the southern police checkpoint by hiding in the rear of a van.
The van headed to Te Kūiti, where it stopped for petrol, and continued to Whanganui, where Kiro was dropped off.
Following a tip-off, the police went to an apartment in Whanganui where they found Kiro hiding under a duvet, pretending to be his partner’s 18-year-old daughter.
In explanation, he said he had left Auckland because he had nowhere to go. However, following subsequent inquiries, the police learned Kiro and his partner still had a lease on a home in Auckland for the following two months.
The name of Kiro’s cryptocurrency victim was suppressed by Judge Brett Crowley. He was represented in court by lawyer Rhiannon Scott, who advised he had completely repaid the money he had stolen.
He was willing to participate in a restorative justice conference with his victim, and the judge ordered such a meeting to be arranged – if the victim was keen.
Kiro will be sentenced on September 15.