Court rejects bid to remove Ellie Stone's name from media reports
Friday 11 September 2026 · 2 outlets · 2 reports · updated In this story Auckland District Court
An Auckland judge has dismissed an application by Ellie Stone to have her name removed from media articles regarding her criminal history. Stone, who served prison time for mortgage fraud, sought to scrub the reports, but the Crown and media outlets opposed the move.
Key facts
5 facts
- Ellie Stone was sentenced to five years' imprisonment in 2016 for mortgage fraud
- The fraud involved submitting fake and forged documents to banks for 11 properties
- Judge Stephen Bonnar KC declined the suppression application in August
- Stone has used the names Eli Devoy, Eli Ghorbani and Elaheh Ghorbani Sar Sangi
- Stone's lawyer, Sam Wimsett KC, confirmed no appeal would be filed
The full story
1 min read · 2 outlets
Ellie Stone has failed in a court application to have her name removed from media articles regarding her past criminal convictions. The application sought to scrub her name from internet reports concerning an elaborate mortgage fraud scheme. Judge Stephen Bonnar KC declined the application in August, stating the "horse had already bolted".
Stone, who has also used the names Eli Devoy, Eli Ghorbani and Elaheh Ghorbani Sar Sangi, was sentenced in 2016 to five years' imprisonment. The Serious Fraud Office prosecuted Stone for an elaborate scheme involving forged documents to obtain loans for 11 properties.
Stone and her husband, Warren Devoy, applied for suppression in November last year due to the ongoing impacts on family members. While the Crown and various media outlets opposed the application, the judge noted that Warren Devoy had never been suggested to be involved in the offending.
Stone's lawyer, Sam Wimsett KC, confirmed that no appeal would be filed following the decision. Stone stated she accepted the ruling and had sought suppression to protect her loved ones rather than for her own benefit.
Compiled from reports by Stuff and NZ Herald.