Toronto police have charged five more people in connection with an investigation into a gold bar heist that led to $1.8 million worth of gilt going missing.
Police confirmed that a Thursday raid at a home on Mount Pleasant Road, in which at least one person was arrested, was connected to the investigation. Other raids in Toronto and Pickering led to even more arrests.
Siva Suthakaran, 45, of Toronto; Natasha Sukh, 29, of Ajax; Remy Boghossian, 44, of Pickering; Raffi Ebrekdjian, 51, of Toronto; and Garnet Marziliano, 29, of Toronto are facing charges.
Police say between Feb. 9 and Feb. 11, a fraudulently obtained bank draft worth $1,895,751 was allegedly used to purchase a quantity of gold bars in Montreal. The force says that included in this purchase were 75 unique 10 oz gold bars manufactured by the Perth Mint in Australia.
The bars bear the mint symbol on the front with kangaroos on the back, and police warn that further attempts may be made to sell the bars.
However none of the kangaroo-stamped gold bars have been found.
Police previously charged two men – Senthuran Kanapathipillai, 32, and Thevarajah Thambipillai, 55 – who are accused of attempting to sell the bars.
The Canadian Bankers Association is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to an arrest, conviction of recovery of the bars.
Anyone with information about the gold bars is asked to call Toronto police at 416-808-7304 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-8477.
