A Canadian police department suspects more than 6,500 gold bars went missing overseas last year after being stolen from an airport.
The incident, which occurred in April 2023 at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport, was perhaps the most valuable gold heist in history. Police reported that more than CA$20,000,000 worth of gold was stolen in the form of 6,600 serialized bars.
“We believe a significant portion has gone overseas to markets that are awash with gold,” lead investigator Det. Sgt. Mike Mavity said at a meeting of the Peel Police Service Board on June 21, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
CANADIAN POLICE SAYS 9 PEOPLE WILL BE CHARGED AFTER $20 MILLION WORTH OF GOLD WAS STOLEN FROM AIRPORT LAST YEAR
Police officers open the back of a recovered truck during a press conference about Project 24K, a joint investigation into the theft of gold at Pearson International Airport in Brampton, Ontario. (Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP)
He continued: “That would be Dubai or India, where you can take gold with serial numbers on it and they will still honor it and melt it down.”
Mavity believes the gold was transferred to another party and melted down shortly after the robbery.
Suspects in the case include a jewelry store owner, a former Air Canada manager and a warehouse worker. A total of nine people have been arrested in connection with the case.
TORONTO AIRPORT ROBBERY: $15M CONTAINER OF GOLD AND VALUABLES STOLEN FROM CARGO FACILITY
A photo of the counterfeit seafood order used to gain access to the Air Canada warehouse is displayed on a monitor. Peel Regional Police and the U.S. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Bureau have released details and arrests in the theft of $20 million worth of gold from Pearson International Airport. (Richard Lautens/Toronto Star via Getty Images)
The suspects allegedly used a completed seafood pickup invoice to falsify documents given to a warehouse employee.
Authorities believe a small amount of precious metal was melted down in the basement of a Mississauga jewelry store immediately following the robbery. Only $90,000 was recovered from the robbery.
Police have attempted to establish a link between the stolen gold and the cross-border arms trade, citing dozens of firearms seized from suspects during the investigation.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Sergeant Mike Mavity of the Peel police, one of the lead investigators in the case, speaks to the media as he looks at the total amount of gold found so far. (Richard Lautens/Toronto Star via Getty Images)
Two fully automatic weapons and several untraceable firearms were seized, but authorities have not yet provided concrete evidence of links to the illegal arms trade.