Multiple individuals were arrested by Canadian Police in Canada suspected of stealing thousands of gold bars with a value of more than 20 million Canadian dollars ($14m), which authorities say was the biggest gold heist in the country’s history. Last year’s robbery at a Toronto Pearson International Airport was composed by a “well-organized gang of criminals”, Peel Local Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah informed newspapers on Wednesday.
This specific theft is the largest gold theft in Canadian history, and it is one of the largest, in North America. The consignment of 6,600 gold bars with a weight of around 400kg (882 pounds) originated from a refinery in Switzerland. That consignment, along with 2.5 million Canadian dollars ($1.8m) in foreign bank notes, was pilfered from an Air Canada hanger on April 17, 2023.
On Wednesday, police named nine accused in the robbery and categorized the charges they face. Five of the accused were detained in Canada and released on bail awaiting trial, police said. One other suspect, formerly from Brampton, Ontario, was arrested in Pennsylvania after being exposed to dozens of banned firearms. That individual remains in custody in the United States. Arrest warrants have been distributed for the remaining three accused. The suspects include two Air Canada personnel and a jewelry store proprietor, as well as the suspected getaway driver.
According to authorities, the stolen gold was primarily offloaded from a plane and then warehoused in a cargo holding facility. Roughly two and a half hours later, an individual driving a truck arrived at the cargo dock with a fake air waybill to claim the consignment. The article he used to track the international shipments had been written at the Air Canada cargo facility.
With Wednesday’s announcement, Air Canada informed it had suspended one cargo division worker charged with the theft. The other, who operated in the same subdivision at the time of the robbery, had left the airline before the charges were declared. As this is now before the courts, we are restricted in our ability to comment, Air Canada said in a report. Authorities said they suspect some of the accused were also tangled in illegal firearms trafficking. Police further added that they seized 430,000 Canadian dollars ($312,000) alleged to be proceeds from the sale of the gold, and six “loosely made” gold trinkets worth an assessed value of 89,000 Canadian dollars ($65,000).
