Based on the book: 'The Plot to Subvert Wartime New Zealand' by Hugh Price A true story. 1942. New Zealand is at war. Times are desperate. The Japanese invasion seems imminent. At this perilous moment, confidence trickster Syd Ross completes his sentence and is released from Waikeria Prison. He makes a phone call and finds himself in front of Prime Minister Fraser. Syd tells a tale of sabotage and assassination, of a Nazi plot to take over New Zealand. Fraser contacts Major Folkes, head of the Security Intelligence Bureau. Folkes seizes on Ross' story, gives Ross a new identity, a car, money and accommodation at The Grand in Rotorua. Ross is to gather evidence on the 'Nazi plot'. As he does so, Folkes puts together a secret dossier, embroidering Ross' lies and building a picture of a country in extreme danger. SPIES AND LIES is a ripping yarn about conspiracy, incompetence, and an extraordinary hoax that challenged the highest levels of New Zealand government.
—South Pacific Pictures