Perpetrator of hoax letters found

Press, 9 October 1987, Page 40

Perpetrator of hoax letters found

PA Tauranga Post Office and Social Welfare Department officials have traced the perpetrator of a batch of hoax letters which used photocopied departmental letterheads. The director of the Department of Social Welfare’s northern region, Mr Robin Wilson, said the man had posted the letters through the company he worked for to people he knew, and had been dealt with by his company. But the man was not the original writer of the letters, many of which were sent to western Bay of Plenty people from various locations. Some of the letters had a photocopied Auckland City Council letterhead. “Once these things get into enough hands it is almost impossible to find

the original perpetrator," Mr Wilson said. He was not amused by the letters, which suggested that the recipient host a Pacific Island extended family for a few months, among other things. “People should burn them, or if they are distressed, send them to us and we will continue our inquiries,” he said. Investigations so far had shown that no-one who worked for the department had written them, and no unauthorised person had had acces to the department’s mailing lists. “We would not have sent photocopies,” Mr Wilson said. “Our letters are personalised and would be in O.H.M.S. envelopes. “I think these letters will float round for a few , years,” he said.