The couple are are jointly accused of supplying false and misleading information. File photo. Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
A Bangladeshi man used his younger brother's identity to obtain visas, residence and citizenship during a 20-year immigration fraud, a court has been told.
Jahangir Alam faces 29 charges of using a document with intent to defraud, making false representations and using a false or forged travel document.
He and his wife Taj Shiilpi are standing trial at the Auckland District Court and deny all charges.
They are jointly accused of supplying false and misleading information, including about the duration of their relationship.
Prosecutor Liam Dalton told a jury of four men and eight women that Alam's brother moved to the US in 1997, but his passport was used to enter New Zealand in 2000.
"Mr Alam is not who he says he is," he said. Authorities still did not know Alam's true identity, he added.
His lawyer Johann Schlebusch said his client was using his own name and asked the jury to keep an open mind as they heard the evidence.
The trial continues.
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