A thorough probe into the 2012 heist of 476 pounds of gold in Curacao has been urged after an audit report suggested that the initial investigation was lax in an effort to protect persons who may have been involved in the unlawful shipment.
The gold said to be worth US$11.5 million was stolen from a Guyanese fishing boat – Summer Bliss in November 2012 in Curaçao. Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman has said that the gold came from Guyana but to date the face behind the gold shipment is unknown.
A report by accounting firm Ram and McRae which conducted a forensic audit of the Guyana Gold Board (GGB) criticised the investigation into the Curacao gold heist.
“The reports presented to us suggest a less than serious attempt to pursue the investigations with a view to protecting persons who may have been involved in the unlawful shipment. We find it curious that the Guyana Gold Board, the principal regulator was not a party to the investigations,” the report said. It pointed out that the Gold Board Act gives the GGB access to the premises and records of payments and inventory of dealers and that right ought to have been exercised with a view to determining any significant variances.
The report said that of particular concern, was that the Curacao representatives stated that they would only provide further information requested by a team from Guyana that investigated if the request came from the Guyana Public Prosecutor to the Public Prosecutor in Curacao. It revealed that a letter was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions on 16 September 2015 enquiring as to whether the report was forwarded to that office for action. As of the 4 November 2015 a response was not received.
“A thorough inter-agency investigation into the delays in the investigations should be carried out to determine the cause of the delays or inaction. Further, efforts should be made to pursue the investigations with assistance from Curacao and other regional and international agencies as appropriate. The method of communication with foreign authorities of gold shipments should be reviewed to determine the safeguards necessary to prevent such shipments from going undetected,” the report recommended.
The report had noted that following the gold heist, a team from the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) visited Curacao and a report was compiled. “The report was provided to the Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment and it appears that recommended actions were not pursued, reducing the chances of identifying and prosecuting the shipper,” the audit report says.
“We believe that the occasion provided an opportunity for the Gold Board and the police to carry out visits to the business places of the larger gold dealers in Guyana. We are surprised that this was not done by any of the regulatory or enforcement agencies,” the audit report said.
It had noted that the Summer Bliss was registered at Port Georgetown as a cargo vessel in the name of Deosarran Shivpaul whose address was Lot 23, Tenze Firme, Canal #1, West Bank Demerara. However, the police were unable to trace this person at the address which on investigation was an empty plot of land.
“Our recommendation is that this investigation should be pursued with such regional and international assistance considered necessary. The objective is to bring this matter to a conclusion, ascertain how it was perpetrated, punish the wrongdoers and put safeguards in place to avoid any recurrence,” the audit report said.
Minister of State Joseph Harmon had previously said that the Guyana government might reopen the Curaçao gold heist investigation.
In November 2012, the Summer Bliss was raided by gunmen, moments after it moored in Curaçao. They took 476 pounds of gold, which fuelled speculation that the gold might have been smuggled from Guyana.
From the inception, observers had pointed out that the crew members were pivotal to the investigation into the origin of the gold but the government here seemed uninterested in gaining access to them. The boat was last seen in Guyana’s waters prior to the heist. The investigation at the Curaçao end has since stalled as authorities there cannot find the Guyanese crew.
Last year, head of the Special Organised Crime Unit, Assistant Superintendent Sydney James had told Stabroek News that there was evidence of a large-scale network involving several locally-registered mining companies in the smuggling of gold through the country’s major ports. “Based on information gathered, we suspect a number of major networks/individuals are engaged in this practice… there are hundreds of people…some are well-established businesses licensed to export gold,” he had said.
The issue of gold smuggling was raised last year after it was revealed that during a four-month period, gold worth billions of dollars was smuggled into the US. After being alerted, US authorities made contact with local authorities. Investigations were launched at both ends.
