Auckland Restaurant Director Sentenced for Wage Subsidy Fraud 

Qian Li, also known as Amy Li, previously pled guilty to one charge of dishonestly using a document. The charge relates to a fraudulent wage subsidy application submitted in March 2020 on behalf of her business, LLM Restaurant Limited (now in liquidation), which operated BBQ King in Albany.

Between March 2020 and March 2021, Li submitted a total of eight wage subsidy applications. One of these applications falsely listed five individuals as employees. They had either never worked for the business or were no longer employed at the time of the application.

As a result, LLM Restaurant Limited received $26,659.20 in wage subsidy funds it was not entitled to and which was not paid to the listed individuals.

Li appeared before District Court Judge Paul Murry who gave credit for genuine remorse, previous good character, circumstances at the time of offending and a guilty plea. 

Reparation of $17,659.20 was ordered. As Li had already repaid $9000, she was ordered to pay the remainder of the money she fraudulently obtained.

A total of 56 people have been sentenced in wage subsidy cases, and another 48 people are still before the courts as part of MSD’s programme of work on wage subsidy fraud and integrity. Since the scheme started, more than $830 million* in wage subsidies has been repaid.

For more information about the Wage Subsidy Integrity and Fraud Programme please see here.

 *Figures at 7 November 2025