The court heard that in February 2025 McAuley knocked on the victim\u2019s door and claimed to be \u201cdoing rounds for gutter cleaning\u201d.<\/p>\n
He quoted her $800 to clean her gutters and said he would need more money for brushes and other equipment. <\/p>\n
He took the victim to an ATM, and she withdrew $870 for him. <\/p>\n
Days later, he went back to the victim\u2019s house and said he needed \u201cliquid for her gutter so it would stay clean forever\u201d.<\/p>\n
She gave him her bank card, and he withdrew $850.<\/p>\n
The next day, he told her he needed money for his car and withdrew another $850.<\/p>\n
He promised that he \u201cworked as a builder and would pay the money back\u201d.<\/p>\n
Over the following four weeks, he \u201ccontinually returned\u201d to the victim and \u201cspoke about hardship and continued to obtain cash from her\u201d until he had \u201ccleaned out\u201d her bank account \u201centirely\u201d. <\/p>\n
When McAuley was arrested he told police the victim was \u201clying\u201d.<\/p>\n
But he recently pleaded guilty to 12 charges of obtaining by deception, admitting that he stole a total of $10,680 from the latest victim. <\/p>\n
Judge Maria Pecotic revealed McAuley had 45 convictions \u2013 of which 38 involve offending of a similar kind. <\/p>\n
She also confirmed that he was subject to prison release conditions at the time of the offending. <\/p>\n
The victim\u2019s daughter read an impact statement to the court. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe impact on my mother has been profound,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has been ashamed and attempted to hide what has happened.<\/p>\n
\u201cLosing control of her financial independence has been extremely distressing. <\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother deserves dignity, safety and the protection from individuals like [McAuley].\u201d<\/p>\n
Serial scammer Dean James McAuley. Photo \/ Anna Leask<\/p>\n
A presentence report stated McAuley was a father of four \u2013 three adults and a son born last year \u2013 and a grandfather of 11.<\/p>\n
He did not work, rather he was \u201creliant on the Government\u201d to support himself and his family.<\/p>\n
He had been assessed as being a \u201chigh risk for recidivism\u201d.<\/p>\n
Judge Pecotic said McAuley had offered to pay his victim back \u2013 but there was no realistic way for him to do that with no job and effectively no current prospects.<\/p>\n
She said ordering him to pay the woman back the more-than-$10,000 he stole was \u201csetting him up to fail\u201d and she worried he would continue offending in order to obtain the funds.<\/p>\n
She also noted McAuley \u2013 while indicating he was \u201csorry\u201d \u2013 was not remorseful, and a presentence report indicated he \u201cminimised\u201d his offending and \u201cblamed\u201d the victim. <\/p>\n
After considering submissions from the Crown and defence, she sentenced McAuley to another stint in jail.<\/p>\n
She also ordered that he be subject to release conditions when he is eventually released. <\/p>\n
McAuley\u2019s relentless scamming<\/p>\n
The victim\u2019s daughter spoke to the Herald ahead of sentencing. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe approached her as a tradesperson just starting out in business \u2013 he said that he did roofing and guttering work and that her gutters needed attention. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe said that he had done some work for some people around the corner, and they were really happy with his work, and he was a good worker. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then from there, he just gained her trust \u2026 phone records showed that over 33 days he text and called her 194 times.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah said her mother had a condition that made walking painful, which McAuley used to his advantage.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first time, he walked her over to the ATM machine to get the money out,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then after he returned and said he had some more work to do \u2026 coerced her into handing her card over because she was in too much pain to actually go over.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen he came back and he actually had the ATM docket and he counted all the money out for her \u2013 just to make out that he was very genuine and trustworthy.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Herald’s earlier coverage of serial scammer Dean McAuley.<\/p>\n
McAuley soon started telling the victim hard luck stories to get his hands on more cash \u2013 including having a broken down car and no money for repairs, and sleeping in his car and having no money for food. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo, she gave him more money, and I think it just sort of escalated from there,\u201d Sarah said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t know what was going on until a friend of hers got in touch. They went out to lunch together, and her card declined, and this friend knew that wasn\u2019t right. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe got her in the car, and she got it out of her. The friend was the one who reported it to the police because mum didn\u2019t want to.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen she got mum down to the bank, and they closed her accounts. From there, we took over.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Sarah found out what was happening, she was horrified \u2013 more so when she learned about McAuley\u2019s past. <\/p>\n
\u201cAt first I was like, I\u2019m not sure if it\u2019s him because he should still be in jail \u2013 and then we found out that he was actually out,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019d got out early, because of good behaviour. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt made me so angry because this person is very good at manipulating people, and obviously, he knows the right things to say and do to get his own way. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut he\u2019s not safe to be out \u2013 because he just repeats, he just does the same thing again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dean McAuley in the North Shore District Court in 2013. Photo \/ Greg Bowker<\/p>\n
Sarah said her mother was deeply affected by McAuley\u2019s offending.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe lost a huge amount of weight,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe says that she\u2019s not going to let it affect her \u2013 but we can tell that it does, because every now and again something will come up and then she\u2019ll berate herself and say things like \u2018I\u2019m just a stupid old lady\u2019 and \u2018how could I get fooled\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just broken her confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Scammer \u2018beyond rehabilitation\u2019<\/p>\n
Sarah now has control of her mother\u2019s finances, which has also been hard for the once-independent pensioner to accept.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has to come to me if she wants anything above what she would normally spend, which is pretty hard on her,\u201d Sarah said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know it does annoy her \u2026 it does upset her and annoy her that she can\u2019t just have control of her money anymore. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut we decided to do that because of what\u2019s happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah believed McAuley should spend much more time in prison for his offending \u2013 given it seems he goes straight back to his tricks as soon as he gets out of prison.<\/p>\n
The victim has been deeply impacted by McAuley’s offending. Photo \/ NZME<\/p>\n
\u201cI want a sentence that reflects the deliberate targeting of elderly women in vulnerable positions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that the court can only hand down a certain sentence, but I would really like to see this addressed \u2013 the emotional harm, the ongoing loss of independence that he causes to elderly people because of his actions.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd, I would like him to actually see that he has to do his full sentence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah feared her mother would not be McAuley\u2019s last victim. <\/p>\n
\u201cI would like to actually tell him that I don\u2019t believe that he can be rehabilitated \u2013 he\u2019s beyond rehabilitation,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
A litany of offending: McAuley\u2019s scamming <\/p>\n
In 2023, McAuley was jailed<\/a> for more than two years for offending against two elderly women in 2022 \u2013 one of whom was recovering from a severe stroke.<\/p>\n In 2013, he was sentenced to two years and four months<\/a> in prison after fleecing an 87-year-old woman out of more than $21,000.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is abundantly plain to me that you need to be detained,\u201d the sentencing judge said.<\/p>\n \u201cMembers of the community, particularly vulnerable elderly ladies, need to be protected from you.<\/p>\n \u201c[McCauley] is a menace to elderly women, and the sooner his picture is put out in the media so those who are potentially affected by him in the future are aware, the better.\u201d<\/p>\n The Parole Board has also voiced concerns about McAuley over the years. <\/p>\n In 2015, the board said McAuley\u2019s appearance was \u201cnot very reassuring\u201d, and he was denied parole. <\/p>\n \u201cHe appeared to have difficulty in comprehending and dealing with questions concerning his offending and his attitude to rehabilitation, and the board is of the view at this stage that he still presents as an undue risk,\u201d the panel convenor said. <\/p>\n \u201cHis home and family are in Auckland, but his wife does not wish to have him back in the family home, given a background of domestic violence and arguing.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are concerned that Mr McAuley has been in prison for a considerable time without any significant rehabilitation initiatives being offered to him.\u201d<\/p>\n Later that year, he was denied parole again. <\/p>\n A report provided to the board noted that the scammer\u2019s \u201clow assessed risk limited rehabilitative opportunities\u201d.<\/p>\n He did not meet the criteria for medium intensity or short rehabilitation programmes or \u201ca psychological service\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIt concerns us that the report from the psychologist described \u2018steady progress\u2019 and that Mr McAuley was considered \u2018to have demonstrated good insight in relation to some aspects of his life\u2019,\u201d the board said.<\/p>\n \u201cAgain, he was unable to articulate any of that despite repeated opportunities.<\/p>\n \u201cThe net result for us today was that we could not be satisfied that Mr McAuley had reduced his risk to a point where it was not undue.\u201d<\/p>\n The board said McAuley needed to \u201cpractise problem solving, particularly generating alternatives, contingency planning and thinking of the consequences\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cShould Mr McAuley be able to develop these skills it is likely that he will feel more able and willing to take greater responsibility for his choices and behaviour,\u201d it stated. <\/p>\n McAuley\u2019s \u2018complex spreadsheet of issues\u2019<\/p>\n McAuley appeared before the board for a final time in February 2016, ahead of his sentence end date in June, when he legally had to be released from prison.<\/p>\n At that hearing the board put a number of release conditions in place for the recidivist. <\/p>\n \u201cHe presented to us a quite complex spreadsheet of issues that he needs to focus on in the future to try and keep himself free from further criminal activity,\u201d the final report said. <\/p>\n \u201cThe board was concerned with the nature of his offending and that it was recidivist offending really targeting elderly women with respect to maintenance projects on their properties and then not ever following through to complete the programmes. <\/p>\n \u201cHe was warned \u2026 that if he reoffended he could be expecting a very lengthy sentence.\u201d<\/p>\n Before the hearing McAuley completed a single session with a psychologist and the board noted while that was \u201cof benefit to him\u201d it was still of the view he posed an undue risk to the safety of the community.<\/p>\n The offender was asked to complete a short rehab programme before his release \u2013 and if that was not possible, urged him to \u201cfocus on the things he has learned from the psychologist to consolidate the skills that hopefully he has acquired during that one-on-one\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want him to entrench the gains and skills that he has learned and to show stability and positive change over the remaining few months,\u201d the board said. <\/p>\n \u201cWe hope that when he is released from prison.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2022 he started offending again. <\/p>\n Anna Leask is a senior journalist who covers national crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2008 and has worked as a journalist for 20 years with a particular focus on family and gender-based violence, child abuse, sexual violence, homicides, mental health and youth crime. She writes, hosts and produces the award-winning podcast A Moment In Crime, released monthly on nzherald.co.nz<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The court heard that in February 2025 McAuley knocked on the victim\u2019s door and claimed to be \u201cdoing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":246946,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[119074,29184,74,6030,1643,1558,52132,36473,15453,19100,1342,42,1861,14641,42031,144137,43,3111,1523,8442,38312,13743,21413,17902,40,38,41,39,36008,4518,102,2248],"class_list":["post-246945","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-91yearolds","tag-account","tag-after","tag-again","tag-bank","tag-been","tag-cleaning","tag-dean","tag-elderly","tag-entirely","tag-five","tag-headlines","tag-history","tag-jailed","tag-lengthy","tag-mcauley","tag-news","tag-out","tag-over","tag-prison","tag-scammer","tag-sent","tag-serial","tag-targeting","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-vulnerable","tag-weeks","tag-with","tag-women"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246945","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=246945"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246945\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/246946"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=246945"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=246945"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=246945"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}McAuley is known to accompany his victims to cash machines. Photo \/ NZME<\/p>\n
McAuley has been jailed repeatedly for ripping off elderly women. Photo \/ 123rf<\/p>\n