Police in Canada have announced progress in the investigation of an audacious gold heist that shocked the nation.
The theft at Toronto Pearson International Airport in April 2023 saw more than $20 million worth of gold bars vanish soon after arriving from Switzerland.
The loot, part of a shipment en route to a Canadian refinery from Zurich on behalf of Swiss banks Raiffeisen and Valcambi, was targeted just minutes upon landing. Authorities now link the heist to four people recently indicted in the U.S. for their involvement in a cross-border gun smuggling operation.
Among the accused are Durante King-Mclean, 25, Prasath Paramalingam, 34, and Archit Grover, 36, all from Brampton near the airport. They allegedly used a false waybill to deceive Air Canada staff and spirit away 880 pounds of gold ingots and nearly $2 million in cash.
Jalisa Edwards, 25, of Fort Lauderdale, was arrested Thursday in Florida for aiding Mr. King-Mclean, who had driven the truck that carried off the gold on his way to buy guns.
The robbery case has been marked as the sixth-largest gold heist in global criminal history and is considered the largest such theft in Canada.
The brazen plot unfolded at one of the country’s busiest airports. The arrest trail began when Pennsylvania police apprehended Mr. King-Mclean for traffic violations, uncovering his illegal status in the U.S. and a cache of 65 firearms in his vehicle. This finding led to deeper investigations linking Mr. Paramalingam to the gun smuggling operation, implicating him in organizing Mr. King-Mclean’s U.S. entry.
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