Three face trial over 1 million euro diamond swindle

Three Romanians have been ordered to stand trial in France on charges they made off with one million euros worth of diamonds from a French jeweller and his Indian partner, in an elaborate hoax resembling a Hollywood movie script.

The suspects, thought to members of a network of gem thieves operating across Europe, will go before a judge on March 3 in the southwestern city of Castres, a source close to the inquiry told AFP.

They are accused of snatching three diamonds from a jeweller based in the small town of Mazamet, near Castres, who was acting as a middleman for an Indian gem trader.

The August 2017 scam was launched four months earlier at a diamond trade fair in Monaco, when two of the suspects introduced themselves to the jeweller as a wealthy Armenian couple looking to invest in precious gems.

They set up a second meeting in Milan, before a third meeting in Mazamet in August, when the supposed buyers asked to have an independent expert examine the stones owned by trader Nishit Shah.

After concluding the deal, the jeweller placed the gems in a sealed box while awaiting a promised bank transfer of $1.1 million (one million euros).

But the next day, when no money arrived, the jeweller opened the box to discover it empty.

“It’s a classic technique, what we call a thief with golden hands — international experts with a talent for swiping valuables,” the source said.

The two Romanians posing as the couple were arrested a few weeks later in Nice, where police seized luxury cars and watches as well as both real and fake gems and counterfeit cash.

The supposed expert, who is also Romanian, was arrested in November 2017 in Modane, a village in the French Alps on the border with Italy, where he was found in possession of a fake diamond.

Investigators say he was to receive 50,000 euros for spiriting away the three stones in a theft orchestrated by a Serbian national based in the Paris suburb of Bondy.

Prosecutors have seized the Serbian’s home and issued a warrant for his arrest.

“These are major criminal organisations with contacts across most of Europe,” the source said.

The diamond trader, Shah, will not be at the trial, having died of a heart attack in Mumbai in 2018.

Source: DCLA

Three face trial over 1 million euro diamond swindle

Three Romanians have been ordered to stand trial in France on charges they made off with one million euros worth of diamonds from a French jeweller and his Indian partner, in an elaborate hoax resembling a Hollywood movie script.

The suspects, thought to members of a network of gem thieves operating across Europe, will go before a judge on March 3 in the southwestern city of Castres, a source close to the inquiry told AFP.

They are accused of snatching three diamonds from a jeweller based in the small town of Mazamet, near Castres, who was acting as a middleman for an Indian gem trader.

The August 2017 scam was launched four months earlier at a diamond trade fair in Monaco, when two of the suspects introduced themselves to the jeweller as a wealthy Armenian couple looking to invest in precious gems.

They set up a second meeting in Milan, before a third meeting in Mazamet in August, when the supposed buyers asked to have an independent expert examine the stones owned by trader Nishit Shah.

After concluding the deal, the jeweller placed the gems in a sealed box while awaiting a promised bank transfer of $1.1 million (one million euros).

But the next day, when no money arrived, the jeweller opened the box to discover it empty.

“It’s a classic technique, what we call a thief with golden hands — international experts with a talent for swiping valuables,” the source said.

The two Romanians posing as the couple were arrested a few weeks later in Nice, where police seized luxury cars and watches as well as both real and fake gems and counterfeit cash.

The supposed expert, who is also Romanian, was arrested in November 2017 in Modane, a village in the French Alps on the border with Italy, where he was found in possession of a fake diamond.

Investigators say he was to receive 50,000 euros for spiriting away the three stones in a theft orchestrated by a Serbian national based in the Paris suburb of Bondy.

Prosecutors have seized the Serbian’s home and issued a warrant for his arrest.

“These are major criminal organisations with contacts across most of Europe,” the source said.

The diamond trader, Shah, will not be at the trial, having died of a heart attack in Mumbai in 2018.

Source: DCLA

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Is your certified diamond engagement ring insured?

Now you can safeguard your investment with a new superior policy, at a fraction of the cost of insuring under a house hold policy.

CDI guarantees your diamond and jewellery are replaced by your original chosen jeweller.

CDI also guarantees you get exactly the same quality in the event or a total loss.

All the advantages without jeweller setup costs, no excess to you and no hidden fees.

CDI Diamond Insurance 

#diamond #engagement #ring #insurance

WD Sues Diamond Growers over CVD Patents

The companies behind WD Lab Grown Diamonds have filed three lawsuits against competitors, accusing them of infringing patents for diamond synthesis and treatment.

The Carnegie Institution of Washington, a science organization, and M7D Corporation, which trades as WD Lab Grown Diamonds, took action Thursday again six companies that produce or sell diamonds made using chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

One of the complaints targets Pure Grown Diamonds (PGD) and IIa Technologies, which produces CVD goods for PGD. A second filing is against Mahendra Brothers, a De Beers sightholder, and its affiliate, Fenix Diamonds. The third suit takes aim at Altr, another lab-grown supplier, and its owner, R.A. Riam.

Carnegie invented and patented a version of CVD, known as microwave-plasma CVD (MPCVD), that can create a purer diamond because it doesn’t involve electrodes, which often contaminate the product, according to the lawsuits. It also patented a method for enhancing a stone’s visual characteristics through heat treatment at high pressure and temperature. M7D holds the license to both patents, the three similar lawsuits continued.

“The existence of the patents…are well-known in the lab-grown diamond industry, and in particular are well-known by lab-grown diamond manufacturers, importers and sellers,” Carnegie and M7D claimed.

Carnegie and M7D are seeking damages and a judgment declaring that the six companies violated their patents. The companies were not available for comment Sunday.

Source: DCLA

WD Sues Diamond Growers over CVD Patents

The companies behind WD Lab Grown Diamonds have filed three lawsuits against competitors, accusing them of infringing patents for diamond synthesis and treatment.

The Carnegie Institution of Washington, a science organization, and M7D Corporation, which trades as WD Lab Grown Diamonds, took action Thursday again six companies that produce or sell diamonds made using chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

One of the complaints targets Pure Grown Diamonds (PGD) and IIa Technologies, which produces CVD goods for PGD. A second filing is against Mahendra Brothers, a De Beers sightholder, and its affiliate, Fenix Diamonds. The third suit takes aim at Altr, another lab-grown supplier, and its owner, R.A. Riam.

Carnegie invented and patented a version of CVD, known as microwave-plasma CVD (MPCVD), that can create a purer diamond because it doesn’t involve electrodes, which often contaminate the product, according to the lawsuits. It also patented a method for enhancing a stone’s visual characteristics through heat treatment at high pressure and temperature. M7D holds the license to both patents, the three similar lawsuits continued.

“The existence of the patents…are well-known in the lab-grown diamond industry, and in particular are well-known by lab-grown diamond manufacturers, importers and sellers,” Carnegie and M7D claimed.

Carnegie and M7D are seeking damages and a judgment declaring that the six companies violated their patents. The companies were not available for comment Sunday.

Source: DCLA

UAE Authorities Arrest Traveler Smuggling Diamonds in his Gut

UAE authorities have arrested a man coming from Africa attempting to smuggle 297 grams of raw diamonds estimated at around $90,000 in his gut.

On Thursday, the Federal Customs Authority (FCA) said it received a tip-off about an African man who intends to bring the raw diamonds into the country by smuggling them through Sharjah International Airport.

The FCA, with the coordination of Sharjah’s Department of Sea Ports and Customs, took the necessary measures, and arrested the suspect as soon as he landed at Sharjah Airport. When he reached Sharjah Customs, his passport was confiscated and his bags were checked.

After carrying out an X-ray, officials discovered that the passenger had swallowed 297g of raw diamonds, which were worth around $90,000, the German News Agency reported. The diamonds were seized and the suspect was referred to the concerned authorities.

According to FCA, the suspect said he had visited the UAE on previous occasions but had never committed such a crime. But on this trip, he brought the illegal diamonds, which he purchased from the black market of an African country with the help of two other partners.

He also admitted that he intended to seek potential buyers in the UAE to purchase the diamonds without disclosing names.

Source: DCLA