What would you do if your bank accidentally gave you $6million???

[backtoblue]

(CNN) -- An international manhunt was under way Thursday for a New Zealand couple who fled after a bank mistakenly paid them NZ$10 million (US$6 million) when they applied for a loan of just NZ$10,000.


Westpac bank paid the couple 1,000 times the amount they asked for.

New Zealand authorities said they had sought help from Interpol in locating the couple who disappeared May 7, two days after an employee error at Westpac bank paid them 1,000 times the amount they asked for.

The accidental millionaires, who have not been identified by authorities but are believed to come from the resort of Rotorua, were thought to have left the country, police said.

"At this time I am not prepared to disclose the amount of money involved, name the individuals or business involved, or discuss which country the individuals may be in right now," said Detective Senior Sergeant David Harvey of the New Zealand police. Watch as 'millionaires' go on the run »

Local media identified the couple as Leo Gao and Australian girlfriend Cara Young, adding that they are now believed to be in China.

The bank, too, would only say it was "pursuing vigorous criminal and civil action to recover a sum of money stolen."

However, local media and many Rotorua residents were abuzz about the amount.

TVNZ, a CNN television affiliate, said the couple applied for a NZ$ 10,000 (US$ 6,000) loan for a service station they owned.

On or about May 5, the bank erroneously put NZ$ 10 million (US$ 6 million) into their bank account. What would you do in this situation?

The next day, the service station closed its doors. And the day after, the couple went missing, TVNZ said.

"Saturday, Sunday, we realized something else was up," Rotorua resident Tania Davies told the station. "They'd done a runner."

Another resident, Chevi Lambert, said a private investigator came by asking about the couple over the weekend.

"It's such a big world, he could just disappear," Lambert said.

Police said the bank had recovered part of the money, indicating the couple may not have been able to access the entire amount.


Westpac is one of the country's largest banks with more than one million customers.

Its motto? "Making the most of life."








So, if the bank GAVE this couple the money and it was their own fault, why should the couple have criminal charges put against them? Or, are they thieves that need to be in prison?

[tridim]

1. Accidently spend it.

Actually I wouldn't because I don't want to go to prison, but that's what my snap reaction would be.

[backtoblue]

17. Initially, I would want to keep the money

I don't know how strong of an urge that might be and if I would be strong enough to return all of it.

The thought of never worrying about grocery money or school clothes is mighty tempting. It would be almost like a poetic justice because I would buy homeless folks houses and feed hungry children.

Poor, poor bankers.

Honestly, I would probably be in so much shock that the Teller would know something had happened immediately by the look in my face, or by my sudden faint.

[Jack Rabbit]

2. The same thinkg the bank president would do . ..

Deposit the money in the Cayman Islands and don't tell anybody about it.

[leftstreet]

37. +1

[malaise]

46. Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah

:rofl:

[FSogol]

3. If a store accidently charged you too much, wouldn't you expect the money back? n/t

[walldude]

5. Sure and when I pay a credit card bill I expect not to be charged late fees

or have the interest rates jacked up if I am on time. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Call me when life starts being fair.

[Mythsaje]

4. As much as I'd hate doing it (I'd be bitching all the way to the bank)

I'd have to give the money back. If ONLY because I know they'd blame ME for taking advantage of THEIR mistake. Interesting how they can steal OUR money if WE make a mistake (late fees, rapacious interest rate hikes, NSF check fees, etc...) but it's "criminal" if someone else takes advantage of THEIR mistake.

I am dubious regarding the ethics (or lack thereof) involved in stealing from thieves.

[backtoblue]

20. Nice point

They take advantage of our mistakes every day. Governments will protect the rich and send out an army of cops to track you down if you take advantage of their mistake.

I do not like thieves and do not respect crooks, but it's not like the couple walked in and stole the money - it was "given" to them. Eventually they will be caught, but I'm not so sure they should spend time in jail. (bankers generally don't spend time in jail for usury...)

[azmouse]

6. I'd notify the bank of the mistake.

It's not my money. It's not worth spending time in jail to do what that couple did... not worth it at all.

[LaurenG]

7. I would have said something since I have no clue how I'd repay $6,000,000

:shrug:

[backtoblue]

21. well, you could file bankruptcy...

Isn't that how the rich folks do it???

[LaurenG]

26. but then I'd have a bad credit score and my boss wouldn't trust me anymore

and since I'd have no government "friends" to bail me out and my 401-k is pretty well gone, I'd also be poor, homeless and sad. :(

I guess you have to be rich to start with and have a lot of money stashed in the Caymans to get away with that.

[RaleighNCDUer]

32. No, no, no, you FIRST stash the 6 mil in the Caymans,

THEN declare bankruptcy.

That's how the corporate execs do it - just follow their good example.

[gratuitous]

8. I'd presume it was a mistake and give it back

Is there really any question?

[2Design]

9. put it somewhere and earn interest - when they asked for it - return it n/t

[backtoblue]

18. Hey, not such a bad idea

Just hold it for them a little while and earn some interest for your good deed!!!

[ForrestGump]

22. Having the cake and eating it, too

The best of both worlds. I like it.

In reality, I'd probably be predisposed to returning it. Maybe I'm just conditioned. Having read some other perspectives, though, I can see the justification for keeping it. Hence the usually-right Buddhist-style Middle Path appeals...

Keep it in an interest-bearing account as long as you can delay ("darn, I've got the 'flu," "darn, I forgot my PIN number," "darn, my car's got a flat tire," "darn, it's Sunday and the bank's closed"), of course. In light of a little pondering about the evils of so many financial institutions, though, it'd become increasingly tempting to keep it and reduce any resultant karmic debt by giving much or most of it away to appropriate causes.

[Xithras]

44. Exactly. You could drag it out too (legally)

First, stick the money into a Money Market account so it can gain interest but still be readily accessible. When they catch the error, send them back (by certified mail) a request that they provide documentation to support their claim of ownership over the money. Request that the information be sent to your attorney. Once they send it, claim that you're uncomfortable with the idea of electronically moving the money without a paper trail (after all, it's already been lost once!) and request a face to face meeting with the bank manager to turn the money over. Schedule it for the following morning. When you go in, hand him a check that drafts the money from the money market account.

Each step in this process will take at least a day, if not more. If played carefully, you could potentially drag the repayment process out and have the money 10 days or more from the time the money is deposited to the time the refund check clears. In a money market account with a decent rate, you could see from $6,000 to $10,000 in profit from even that short period (depending on how quickly you got it into the account, what your rate is, how quickly they cash the check, etc.)

Ten grand for a paperwork snafu, with no risk of jail? It's not even a moral issue, since the money wasn't taken by you and you ARE returning it. Where do I sign up?

[NeedleCast]

10. The Bank Didn't "Give" them this money as you said

They banked LOANED them an amount of money and due to some error, LOANED them the wrong amount.

That being said, I'd be very tempted to do the same thing. Plenty of countries with nice beaches that don't extradite...

[backtoblue]

65. Well, if it was considered a loan

then the bank should've waited until the couple missed their first month's payment to call the authorities.

That way they could sell the massive loan to a collection agency and at least get part of their money back.

I would think that the bank's computers would have an alert system for money transfers that large. A big, red, blinking light should pop on the screen any time there is a transaction over 100,000 dollars. imho

[MindPilot]

11. That actually happened to me several years ago.

This was in the pre-ATM days when I "banked by mail".

Someone apparently typed the right number in the wrong place and they deposited my account number instead of my meager wages. I suddenly found myself with several hundred thousand dollars in my checking account.

I figured they would find the error and take it back but I could keep the interest. Alas my plan was foiled when I attempted to move it into savings.

[SCantiGOP]

12. without discussing the ethical concerns

and the bank's responsibility, it would be a crime to keep it. They clearly knew it was a mistake, and there have been people prosecuted for this.
A store clerk once gave me an extra $20 in change. It felt much better to give it back to her than anything I could have done with it.

[Enrique]

13. that couple acts fast

I guess they knew the bank wouldn't give them a whole lot of time to mull it over.

[backtoblue]

31. they sure did

They couldn't have given it a second thought. If they're caught I think they could plead temporary insanity because of the massive amount of money handed over to them. No one could think straight in that situation. Once they made the decision to keep it, there could be no turning back - they know they'll be up shit creek if/when the authorities find them.

[konnichi wa]

38. Or maybe they knew there was going to be a 'mistake'....?

and made preparations??
:shrug:

[backtoblue]

42. Ahh, it was the Teller!

She arranged for the couple to come in, "accidentally" hand them over millions, then (after losing her job) she jumps a plane and meets them in the Cayman Islands. Hmmm, so it might be an organized thiefing after all! :dilemma:

[konnichi wa]

47. It's a lot more believable than some of the Sept. 11 wacko theories...

:rofl:

[Subdivisions]

50. And which wacko theories would those be?

Hmmmm?

[konnichi wa]

59. Oh, I don't know...maybe the ones that say there were no airplanes

and the WTC was dropped with planted controlled demolition charges. Goofy shit like that.

[guava]

14. Why should it be considered ethical to take something that doesn't belong to you

simply because someone (or thing) made a mistake? I heard a saying once that ethics is what you do when no one's looking. Too many people try and get away with things because they CAN. It's dishonest!

I always go and tell the clerk when they have undercharged me. At one store, the woman said that no one had ever done that before. Isn't that sad? When I worked retail, people were always ready to bitch when they were overcharged, but you never heard a peep from them when they were UNDERcharged...

[whathehell]

15. I'd give it back AFTER they announced that

they were handing out a big, juicy reward for its return:7

[MindPilot]

16. In legal terms it is called "unjust enrichment".

Sorry, but you don't get to keep it.

[ForrestGump]

23. Fair enough

Though I'd suggest that most corporate interests these days are guilty of exactly that same legal sin, except that they're even more culpable because they do it on purpose and set the entire system up (or subvert, corrupt, or outright buy it) to let themselves get away with it.

Two wrongs may not make a right, but when something like this happens it does throw a few things into a different perspective.

[MindPilot]

28. What you are describing is called

"business" and that is of course just enrichment. Because, you see, they deserve it.

It should not be necessary, but :sarcasm:

[MrSlayer]

19. Go on, take the money and run.

I would be gone the same day I got it.

[Laelth]

24. They owe $990,000.00. They took money they knew did not belong to them.

They're thieves. Monopoly rules do not apply.

If people give you money you don't deserve (and it's clearly not a gift), the right thing to do is give it back.

:dem:

-Laelth

[GaYellowDawg]

63. LOL, didn't see your post and I said the same thing about Monopoly below.

[Laelth]

67. Great minds, you know. n/t

:toast:

:dem:

-Laelth

[dugaresa]

25. call the bank immediately and get it returned

i know someone who had something like this happen but with a much smaller amount and that person went through hell to get that money returned and then the bank flaked out and thought the person owed that money. it was a headache all the way around.

i knew someone who worked for a bank (first job out of college), and she made an accidental transfer to an overseas account. caught the mistake almost a minute later, got it corrected and then got fired.

[Rowdyboy]

27. Maybe it was just a "retention bonus"....You know how generous the banks are

with their bonuses..... :sarcasm:

[uppityperson]

29. It happened to me once. I didn't catch it but the bank did

Got an interesting note from them saying they were deducting some odd millions from my account. I got on the phone to them in a panic, wondering how the hell I'd come up with some odd millions for them.

The person mis-typed and missed the decimal point at a deposit. Ah well. Mistakes happen and by running with the money, they are thieves.

[Vinca]

30. Run like the wind. Maybe the Castro brothers or Hugo C. would take me in.

[bamacrat]

33. If it happened like that I would give back the amount I agreed to borrow..

as to not affect my credit, then use the amount I needed to do what I needed then give the rest to charity before they could find out what happened.

[TahitiNut]

34. I'd collect interest on it (from THEM) until THEY noticed their own error.

Since the money is still in their possession (in an account in THEIR bank), I'd not withdraw it. Just let it ride. Their mistake.

[backtoblue]

35. I wonder if they would actually let you keep the interest...

Probably not, but it would be the nice thing to do if the person didn't spend any of the "accidental" money.

[konnichi wa]

36. Some people apparently think stealing is fine is the victim is a corporation.

I don't happen to agree. What if you sold the spare tire from your car and the buyer came over to pick it up but took the whole car? Would that be okay?
:eyes:

[backtoblue]

40. I'm not sure "victim" and "corporation" can be used in the same sentence, but

you're right that stealing is wrong. It's just that corporations get away with that sort of stealing every day - high interest rates, ridiculous and unnecessary fees, illegible contracts.

Taking something that isn't yours is ALWAYS wrong, but what gets me is how fast Interpol was on the case for the bank. Maybe Interpol should spend some time investigating crimes and theft of some of the fraudulent corporations.

[konnichi wa]

48. Well, I agree that their business practices suck, mostly...but obviously not enough for

everyone to boycott them. I guess it's just one more of those things we can't live with...and can't live without.
:shrug:

[backtoblue]

51. capitalist practice makes thieves...

The rich steal to get richer. The poor steal to get rich.

Capitalism teaches us to always want more. Greed is the only thing that "trickles" down from the rich corporations.

[konnichi wa]

55. You might be right, but I can't recall ever meeting anyone who thought we should dump

the capitalist system. Maybe you're one, though. If so, what would you suggest as a superior alternative?
(I'm trying my best to keep an open mind about it)

[backtoblue]

62. Maybe not dump it completely, but

the problems it's creating definetely need to be addressed.

I'm not an economics expert, but I think forcing corporations to grow and make more profit is a mistake. It creates an excuse to be greedy.

[konnichi wa]

71. Yes, greed is a problem. The people who gave Madoff zillions of $$ are perfect examples.

:shrug:

[lumberjack_jeff]

69. And some people think it's fine if the perpetrator is a corporation...

... provided the theft is given the legitimacy of government.

[cali]

39. pathetic. how about this? that money isn't their's to keep.

and yeah, if my bank made such an error I wouldn't think twice before notifying them. I like my dinky community bank and I don't want to go on the run.

[konnichi wa]

49. I agree! I'd have left off the last 9 words though.

:evilgrin:

[Politicalboi]

41. How did these two people think

They could get enough money out of an account that was overpaid. Unless the bank gave them cash, it was a really stupid thing to do. So you get $100,000, is that worth going to jail over? 6 Million is better but still not worth it. If they went over their $10,000 amount then they haven't done anything wrong.

[backtoblue]

56. The world society is coherced into believing that they can "win" a million dollars.

From the lottery to TV programs that show people doing some pretty bizarre things for money, our media has paved the way to make people think "hey, maybe I'll get that lucky and "win" (or stumble upon in this case) a million dollars.

Survivor, American Idol, Amazing Race, Deal or no Deal, Publisher's Clearing House.

It is the education of the masses - get money, get money, get more money...

[yellowcanine]

43. I once had a bank teller count out 10 times the amount of a check I was cashing.

This happened in a bank in Nairobi, Kenya, I don't recall the actual amount anymore except that the teller goofed and multiplied the disbursement amount by 10. I immediately told him the amount was wrong - he actually started to argue with me but then realized the mistake and was very grateful. I am sure he would have been in deep doo doo at the end of his shift - probably would have gotten his ass fired. Whether the mistake could have been traced to me I don't know but there is no way I could have walked out of there with money which didn't belong to me.

[elizfeelinggreat]

61. I had that happen to me at a drive-up window here in Texas,

I was given $2,000 instead of $200.

I saw how full the envelope was, pulled over in the parking lot and counted it.

I parked and went inside to give it back. I waited and waited (the line was long inside, it was Christmas time) and finally asked someone at a desk to see a manager.

Told my story, gave the extra money back and he asked me to wait while he went to the teller. I saw them talking and he pointed to me and the young woman LAUGHED in my face. I waited a few more seconds and realized he didn't think that was wrong and he wasn't coming back to talk to me.

No one thanked me.

I told some people at the meeting I was headed to what happened and they also laughed at me. Go figure, honesty made me feel awful twice.

:shrug:

[backtoblue]

64. How terrible

Sometimes being a good person means dealing with assholes. He should have at least thanked you and shook your hand.

I think it's like whipping a dog - you get smacked around enough you're more apt to smack back...

[hunter]

45. I'd go to the ATM and print out a couple of "Account Balance" receipts.

Those I'd frame on the wall to remember the good times when I was a millionaire.

Then I'd call the bank and ask them if, by some chance, the money was mine.

Who knows? Maybe an old friend made a direct deposit into my account.

If I was really feeling wicked I'd send 50% to the IRS right away. I wouldn't want anyone to think I wasn't paying my fair share of taxes.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

52. Before, or after, I arrived at the "location unknown"?

[OHDEM]

53. R. U. N.

j/k I have way too guilty of a conscience. Maybe that's what makes me a liberal!

[tammywammy]

54. I would call the bank and give the heads up on the error

Just like if a cashier gives me too much change back, I return it.

[Echo In Light]

57. In this day and age of being 'on the grid' it would be difficult to deal w/6 million

...and not leave trails and clues

[GaYellowDawg]

58. Give it back. IMO that's the only honest thing to do.

Life is not Monopoly. You don't get to keep "Bank error in your favor."

[Gator_Matt]

60. Give the money back

I hate corporations as much as the next person, but this is a disappointing story. How they can uproot and leave everything behind is startling.

[lumberjack_jeff]

66. Accidentally? Given the fact that they've defrauded $2 trillion from me, I'd keep it. n/t

[backtoblue]

72. And so we must define the philosophy of justice...

The bully broke my nose and stole my wallet.

As he ran away, he unknowingly dropped his own wallet onto the ground.

I picked up the wallet to find it was full of 100 dollar bills.

Do I give the bully back his wallet?

[vaberella]

68. Move it immediately to an offshore account in the caribbean. n/t

[earth mom]

70. I have to admit that I'd be ecstatic about this story if it happened to a bailed out U.S. bank.

:evilgrin:

[Dorian Gray]

73. I used to live in England years ago, and I had opened up a Barclay's Bank account while there

Four years after I had come home, I received a statement that 120,000 British pounds were deposited into my account.

I was like.... WHAT????

I called the bank right away to fix the situation. I told them that I had moved back to the US, my account had been inactive for four years, and I wasn't making any deposits, nor did I expect any. They had made a mistake and deposited someone else's money into my account.

So, I feel comfortable in saying that I probably wouldn't take it.