Photo Credit: Peel Police
Canadian police have recently arrested several suspects and issued nine warrants in connection to the largest gold theft in the country's history. The heist took place in April 2023 at Toronto Pearson Airport, where more than 6,500 gold bars worth C$20m ($14.5m/£11.6m) were stolen, along with millions of dollars in cash.
The investigation, code-named Project 24K, was a year-long joint operation between the Canadian Peel Regional Police and the US Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Bureau. The police described the heist as a "Netflix-series"-style robbery carried out by a "well-organized group of criminals."
The alleged driver, Durante King-McClean, was arrested in the US, carrying dozens of guns that police believe were intended for use in Canada. The authorities seized smelting pots, casts, and molds, as well as C$430,000 in cash, which they claim are the profits from selling the stolen gold.
So far, the police have only recovered C$90,000 of "pure gold," which was fashioned into six "crudely made" bracelets. The investigation is still ongoing, and three arrest warrants have been issued for other suspects in Canada.
Five other suspects have been arrested, two of whom were employees of the airline that carried the stolen goods. They have been released on bail and are due to appear in court at a later date.
The heist took place inside a cargo facility after the goods arrived on an Air Canada flight from Zurich, Switzerland. The police believe that an unidentified person accessed the goods by showing a fake airway bill, a document that accompanies shipped items. A five-tonne lorry was then used to steal the gold bars, weighing roughly 400kg (881lb), according to police reports.
Months after the theft, Brink's International, a US-based security company, sued Air Canada, alleging that the airline had been "reckless" and had failed to prevent the theft. Brink claimed that the airline did not attempt to verify the identity of the person who "absconded with the cargo." According to the lawsuit, the goods were stolen 42 minutes after being unloaded from the plane. Air Canada has denied all allegations and rejected any accusations of careless conduct.
The airport has claimed that the thieves "accessed the public side of a warehouse that is leased to a third party, outside of our primary security line." Brink is suing for damages liability and has asked that the value of the stolen goods be paid back by the airline in full.
The heist has drawn attention to the fact that the guns seized in the US were "intended for import into Canada," and the police have said that the guns were a "dotted line" to people's well-being in Canada. "This isn't just about a gold heist, this is about how gold becomes guns," said Nando Iannicca, chair of the Peel Police Services Board.
