Al Jazeera:
Police in Canada have arrested multiple people accused of stealing thousands of gold bars worth more than 20 million Canadian dollars ($14m), in what authorities say was the largest gold heist in the country’s history.
Last year’s theft at a Toronto Pearson International Airport facility was orchestrated by a “well-organised group of criminals”, Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah told reporters on Wednesday.
“This particular theft has become the largest gold theft in Canadian history, and it’s one of the largest, for that matter, in North America.”
The shipment of 6,600 gold bars weighed 400kg (882 pounds) and came from a refinery in Switzerland. That cargo, along with 2.5 million Canadian dollars ($1.8m) in foreign bank notes, was stolen from an Air Canada facility on April 17, 2023.
On Wednesday, police named nine suspects in the heist and detailed the charges they face.
Five of the suspects were arrested in Canada and released on bail pending trial, police said.
One additional suspect, originally from Brampton, Ontario, was arrested in the state of Pennsylvania after being discovered with dozens of illegal firearms. That person remains in custody in the United States.
Canada-wide arrest warrants have been issued for the remaining three suspects.
