A Wellington lawyer who invested $500,000 into New Zealand's largest Ponzi scheme has lost an appeal to keep the profit he made
Hamish McIntosh has lost his appeal before the Court of Appeal.
The scheme was run by David Ross, who was jailed in November 2013 for 10 years and 10 months for defrauding private investors of millions of dollars.
Photo: RNZ
But Mr McIntosh was not one of those who lost money.
In 2011, four years after he borrowed $500,000 to invest, he was repaid his investment plus $454,047 in profit.
He subsequently reinvested much of the money in a separate property development, incurring greater debt.
After the Ponzi scheme was exposed a year later, its liquidators ordered Mr McIntosh to repay his profit as the amount was based on a notional calculation by Ross.
He has fought to keep the money, as he said he had received it in good faith and could not afford to pay it back, but the Court of Appeal has now ruled he must pay the liquidators.