Fake 10 ounce gold bars in New York back in 2012/13

coinsarefun · April 8, 2018 1:56PM

Just saw this today, wow as its very scary how they did this. A ton of time and expertise went into doing this.
Did they ever catch the SOB's?
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYXkSTCU9CA

Zoins · April 8, 2018 3:08PM

Here's a 1983 NY Times article saying the Austrian police arrested four Italians and an Austrian for planning to sell gold bars made of tungsten.

https://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/22/world/austrians-seize-false-gold-tied-to-london-bullion-theft.html

Here's 2009 forum post saying this also happened in China and the perps were apprehended "within hours":

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article14996.html

The amount of “salted tungsten” gold bars in question was allegedly between 5,600 and 5,700 – 400 oz – good delivery bars [roughly 60 metric tonnes].

This was apparently all highly orchestrated by an extremely well financed criminal operation.

Within mere hours of this scam being identified – Chinese officials had many of the perpetrators in custody.

And here’s what the Chinese allegedly uncovered:

Roughly 15 years ago – during the Clinton Administration [think Robert Rubin, Sir Alan Greenspan and Lawrence Summers] – between 1.3 and 1.5 million 400 oz tungsten blanks were allegedly manufactured by a very high-end, sophisticated refiner in the USA [more than 16 Thousand metric tonnes]. Subsequently, 640,000 of these tungsten blanks received their gold plating and WERE shipped to Ft. Knox and remain there to this day. I know folks who have copies of the original shipping docs with dates and exact weights of “tungsten” bars shipped to Ft. Knox.

The balance of this 1.3 million – 1.5 million 400 oz tungsten cache was also plated and then allegedly “sold” into the international market.

Apparently, the global market is literally “stuffed full of 400 oz salted bars”.

Makes one wonder if the Indians were smart enough to assay their 200 tonne haul from the IMF?

coinsarefun · April 8, 2018 6:15PM

Wow! Thanks @Zoins I appreciate all the research you did.
I was never aware of this.

SeatedToners · April 8, 2018 6:19PM

wow that's some crazy stuff. Have the bulk of the fake bars been recovered?

csdot · April 8, 2018 6:26PM

@SeatedToners said:
wow that's some crazy stuff. Have the bulk of the fake bars been recovered?

apparently not. As Zoins said above: "The balance of this 1.3 million – 1.5 million 400 oz tungsten cache was also plated and then allegedly “sold” into the international market. Apparently, the global market is literally “stuffed full of 400 oz salted bars”."

blitzdude · April 8, 2018 6:27PM

Fake bars? Fake Newz? We're gonna make China pay for it. It's gonna be bigley!? It's going to be like the mostest bestest bigley cheeze eva. lulz

Timbuk3 · April 8, 2018 6:32PM

Geeez !!!

BruceS · April 8, 2018 7:05PM

Can the high end analyzers detect these? There must be a way besides drilling them. If not, someone get to work making one, you will make a killing selling an authenticator with all this junk coming out of China.

Jimnight · April 8, 2018 7:35PM

It's amazing how fast something so sweet can turn into something so bitter.

ricko · April 9, 2018 6:54AM

Not being able to afford a 400 ounce gold bar can be a good thing.... and the opposite can be :'( Cheers, RickO

asheland · April 9, 2018 12:02PM

Scary stuff indeed!

mustangmanbob · April 9, 2018 1:37PM

@Zoins said:

>

The balance of this 1.3 million – 1.5 million 400 oz tungsten cache was also plated and then allegedly “sold” into the international market.

>

So, roughly 600 million in fake 400 oz bars floating around, and the total at Fort Knox is roughly 1/4 as much (147 million).

Does it strike anyone as odd that THAT much, solely in 400 oz bars can sneak around for the last 25 years? Of the total amount of gold in the world, taking out coins, jewelry, little bars, etc. how many 400 ounce bars are floating around in the outside world? I know, I have check all 2200 of mine, and they are all good.

Fake 10 ounce gold bars in New York back in 2012/13

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