Debtor site run by ex-convict

Andrew Sisson has connections to the Hells Angels. Photos / Supplied

The man behind a new website that names and shames bad debtors has been revealed as a convicted money launderer and drug supplier who was made bankrupt last year.

The Dirty Debtors website, to be launched next month, is owned by Rodney couple Andrew and Vicki Sisson, who have links to the Hells Angels and have both been imprisoned on drug offences.

Staff at the site have tried to keep the pair's involvement secret, claiming only that it's backed by experienced debt collectors.

But Companies Office information shows they are sole shareholders in the business, while Vicki, who works as a real estate agent, is the director.

Andrew resigned as a director in November, when he was adjudicated bankrupt following a creditor petition. He refused to speak to the Herald on Sunday about his background this week. "I'm not going to talk to you or answer any questions and neither is anyone from Dirty Debtors," he said.

At their Helensville lifestyle block, a teenage girl said the couple were "in a meeting" and couldn't come to the door.

The website's designer, Marilyn Jones, earlier said they were carrying out final tests and planned to launch next month.

The site will allow creditors to publicly list details and photographs of bad debtors for a fee of $99 or $250, depending on the size of the debt. For a further fee, the debtor's photo can be splashed across the website's main page under the heading "Most Wanted".

Jones said the publicity could pressure debtors into paying. Collection agencies could also advertise their services through the site.

The site was briefly live this week before being replaced by a holding page. Listings already online detailed debts ranging from $6000 to $36,000, though it was unclear whether these were authentic cases. Some alleged debtors were pictured, while for others a $50 reward was offered for supplying a photo.

The site said it aimed to help small businesses, adding, "this website gives you the opportunity to expose the people who owe you money, persuading them to pay their debts and warning others they can't be trusted."

Publicly naming bad debtors fell into a legal "grey area," said Gehan Gunasekara, senior lecturer at Auckland University's business school. The website's owners would be at risk of a defamation case if the details listed were incorrect, he said. But it's unclear whether the site falls foul of the Privacy Act.

"You could argue that it's not covered at all because it's not personal information, it's business information."

The site had no mention of its backers.

Andrew Sisson was convicted of money laundering and conspiracy to supply methamphetamine in March 1999. He was sentenced to eight years in prison, and police seized his 6ha property, which he has since bought back.

His 2001 release was under conditions that he not be a member or associate with the Hells Angels motorcycle gang for 12 months.

Vicki, then going by the surname Thorne-George, was convicted of the same charges and sentenced to four years in prison. She was released on home detention in March 2000 and paroled eight months later.