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ONE News decided to investigate just how easy it would be to transfer $10 million overseas, skip the country and keep the money safe and sound.
It comes after a Rotorua couple allegedly did a runner after $10 million was deposited into their business account by Westpac.
The case has now been referred to Interpol.
Banking ombudsman Susan Taylor says it's very unusual for such a high amount of cash being transferred by mistake to a wrong account.
"Its fairly unique with the amount involved. We usually get a few cases a year but these involve a few hundred dollars or at most a few thousand dollars," says Taylor.
It seems with the money the couple have acquired, they could just go to any bank in New Zealand and move the funds offshore.
For example, if they wanted to convert their dollars into say Korean Won, they would then agree on a rate with the bank.
The bank here would then debit their New Zealand bank account and credit a Korean bank account, which could be in any name.
Transfers of more than $250,000 would take at least two days to process.
David Tripe, a banking expert from Massey University, says if the couple are going to be able to get away with the money for any length of time "they will need the money outside the country and in a jurisdiction where there is less in the way of control."
And apparently the world's your oyster if you want to stay on the run.
New Zealand has extradition agreements with some countries, but there are many places where it doesn't.
You could potentially be protected in all of Africa, most of South America, parts of Europe and much of Asia. It also could be difficult to get the cash back even if they can find it.
Chris Gallevan, International Law Lecturer at Canterbury University, says there may be inter-country agreements with the banks but there also needs to be inter-country agreements between the states themselves if any extradition is called for.
"The applications can be made for a freeze to be put on the money wherever that money may have been transferred too but again that relies on New Zealand having an agreement with the specific country," says Gallevan.
A good example is an agreement Britain didn't have with Brazil, when the famous train robbery of 1963 took place there.
Ronnie Biggs took off with millions, escaping extradition law to live the high life in Rio for over three decades.
But for the couple in question, the party may just be getting started, wherever they might be.
