TORONTO: Multiple individuals have been apprehended by Canadian police on suspicion of pilfering thousands of gold bars valued at over 20 million Canadian dollars ($14m), marking what officials describe as the most significant gold theft in the nation’s history.
Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah informed the press that last year’s heist at a Toronto Pearson International Airport facility was orchestrated by a highly organized criminal syndicate.
“This particular theft stands as the largest gold robbery in Canadian annals and ranks among the largest in North America,” Duraiappah stated.
The stolen shipment, comprising 6,600 gold bars weighing 400kg (882 pounds), originated from a Swiss refinery. Alongside the gold, 2.5 million Canadian dollars ($1.8m) in foreign bank notes were also taken from an Air Canada facility on April 17, 2023.
Law enforcement officials have identified nine suspects in connection with the heist and disclosed the charges they are facing. While five suspects have been arrested in Canada and released on bail awaiting trial, one individual, hailing from Brampton, Ontario, was apprehended in Pennsylvania with numerous illegal firearms and remains in U.S. custody. Nationwide arrest warrants have been issued for the remaining three suspects.
Among the accused are two Air Canada employees, a jewelry store proprietor, and the alleged driver of the getaway vehicle. Authorities revealed that the stolen gold was initially unloaded from an aircraft and securely housed in a cargo holding facility.
Two and a half hours later, a man driving a truck arrived at the loading dock with a fraudulent air waybill to claim the cargo. The document he used to track the international shipments had been printed at the Air Canada cargo facility.
In the aftermath of Wednesday’s announcement, Air Canada said it had suspended one cargo division employee charged in the theft. The other, who worked in the same department at the time of the heist, had left the airline before the charges were announced.
“As this is now before the courts, we are limited in our ability to comment further,” Air Canada said in a statement.
Authorities said they believe some of the suspects were also involved in illegal firearms trafficking.
Police added that they seized 430,000 Canadian dollars ($312,000) believed to be profits from the sale of the gold, and six “crudely made” gold bracelets worth an estimated $89,000 Canadian dollars ($65,000).
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