Dear Editor,
All that glitters is gold… or at least it should be, right? I’m writing to express my sheer delight at the recent escapade at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, where two women and a man were caught allegedly trying to smuggle gold jewellery cunningly disguised as silver-plated trinkets. Ah, the audacity! This heartwarming tale of ingenuity gone wrong underscores the ever-present security risks that our customs and gold board will encounter and their ability or inability to differentiate between precious metals and crafty counterfeits.
Disguising gold to slip through security is hardly groundbreaking, but the level of sophistication in these methods is truly impressive. Let’s dive into the world of coating tricks that can make gold look like anything but its true shiny self. For instance, who knew that coating jewellery with colourful plastic or rubber could be a viable smuggling technique? Imagine customs officers scratching their heads over a neon pink bracelet that could be glittering gold.
Take powder coating, for example. This involves applying a dry powder, often a plastic type, and then heating it to form a smooth, vibrant finish. Durable and eye-catching, indeed. Then there’s the dipping or enameling technique, where jewellery is submerged in a liquid plastic or rubber solution, creating a solid, colourful coating. Picture gold earrings masquerading under a glossy, opaque enamel finish—truly, a smuggler’s dream.
Let’s not forget electrocoating (E-coating), where an electric current applies a coloured resin or lacquer, creating a thin, even layer that’s resistant to wear and tarnish. Think of it as gold jewellery getting a sophisticated spray tan. And who could ignore rubber coating? Dipping jewellery into liquid rubber or using a spray application to achieve a matte, flexible finish? Genius! Finally, plastic coating through dipping, spraying, or molding offers a protective and colourful layer, turning high-end bling into what looks like whimsical costume jewellery.
These techniques are typically reserved for making fashionable, modern jewellery rather than high-end pieces. Still, they highlight the creative lengths to which smugglers are likely to employ. For our customs officials and the gold board, understanding these crafty methods is crucial. Enhanced training and advanced detection technology might just save us from future bouts of smuggler-induced embarrassment and safeguard the integrity of Guyana’s gold trade.
In short, our customs officers have quite the task ahead of them in addition to detecting cocaine disguised as milk powder. Staying one step ahead of these sophisticated smuggling techniques is essential to protect our nation’s resources and tax revenues. And who knows, maybe they’ll even get a chuckle out of the next piece of jewellery that tries to pass as anything but what it truly is.
Yours faithfully,
Keith Bernard
