Gold is a driving force for some criminals

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The Bermuda Police Service has teamed up with local gold exchange brokers to recover stolen jewellery.

At more than $1,600 an ounce, gold is proving to be a driving force on Bermuda’s crime scene to generate fast cash from the proceeds of crime.

One man ended up in King Edward VII Memorial’s Intensive Care Unit after he was set upon by two men who stripped him of his gold chain and cell phone.

The victim sustained a fractured skull as a result of the robbery that occurred in broad daylight on Rambling Lane in Pembroke on August 4. The stolen items were valued at $1,300.

Kellon Hill was killed in an unprovoked act of violence centred around a gold chain in 2008. This newspaper reported then that “chain snatching is a gangland show of bravado”.

One source said: “It’s believed he lost his life trying to stop someone from trying to steal his jewellery.”

The issue was raised by The Royal Gazette at a press conference held this week by BPS.

Assistant Commissioner Paul Wright was quick to note that “police have actually recovered stolen property” from local gold exchange outlets, and have “put people in court” for stealing.

“The BPS, particularly with our Criminal Investigation Units, has forged working relationships with most of the bullion exchange companies and we’re seeing increased levels of cooperation from there.

“It’s an economics issue, the value of gold has never been higher and it’s definitely a readily disposable item in burglaries or even in street robberies,” said Mr Wright.

“We offer free crime prevention advice for people on how to secure their valuables and we don’t encourage people walking around with heavy gold chains and putting themselves in a situation where somebody who has a propensity towards robbery might want to snatch the chain and take it away.

“We’re concerned that it’s very difficult to regulate bullion exchange. It’s even possible for somebody to put gold into an envelope and send it off to a bullion exchange in another country.

“I think the local providers here have demonstrated that they are willing to work with us and we’ve yielded some positive results from that relationship.”

James Gilbert owns Bermuda Gold Exchange on Reid Street in Hamilton. When asked about stolen items and the precautions taken to assure the company does not fall victim to fraud, he said: “All of the items are noted in an electronic database and stored away.

“We take photos of each item provided, including the client’s passport or driver’s licence information, and their address. The police contact us on a regular basis with the date the jewellery was stolen. The turnaround time for recovering items usually takes between 24 and 72 hours, depending on if it’s listed in our database or not.”

Mr Gilbert noted that “fraud has become one of their biggest problems”.

“It has been so prevalent that we will press charges in civil court and any client found guilty will be held accountable for their actions.”

He said he didn’t believe that the cost of gold was the key motivating factor in today’s home invasions.

“I don’t think this line of business has been the reason for an increase in this type of crime because people have been selling and trading gold on the underground market for years prior to exchange outlets,” he said.

On the broader issue of the proceeds of crime Mr Wright noted: “The Government recently passed new legislation beefing up powers for proceeds of crime seizures and the police are making good use of that.

“It is our intent that we will take whatever opportunities we can against prolific priority offenders and people who we know are associated with criminal activity relating to gangs,” he said.

“We’re not here to target people because of what they look like, who they hang out with or what neighbourhoods they live in. We are here to focus on bad behaviour on criminality and I think the community has rallied to support us in that because they see that the efforts are focused on those who are creating the greatest threat to the community.”

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