After more than two years of investigation, the Office of the Attorney General in cooperation with the National Directorate of Taxes and Customs1 and financial analysis unit2 assigned to Ministry of Treasury dismantled a network  composed of some  executives and employees from the International Trading Company Goldex and also private individuals, since they laundered an approximate value of 2.3 billion pesos through gold exportations.

“For the Office of the Attorney General this is the most important and accurate masterstroke conducted in Colombia in terms of money laundering through gold trafficking and dealing” stated Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Jorge Fernando Perdomo when he talked about  the importance of the first operative against gold trading in Colombia.

According to the investigation conducted by the Money Laundering and Antinarcotics Directorate with the support of the CTI Judicial Police on Organized Crime, the modus operandi consisted in selling small and big quantities of gold through second-hand stores located at different areas of the country in order for Goldex to sell this metal.

For that purpose, around Goldex a “carousel” of legal entities was constituted and registered in different Chambers of Commerce in the country. They appeared as the company´s suppliers constituted in ways such as: new companies, the same associates, low capitals, several million of pesos in banking operations, billing statements for clients without economic, financial and patrimonial capacity, among others.

According to the evidentiary material, these suppliers had other suppliers who committed several irregular operations when they carried out direct commercial operations with people who do not exist as proved by National Registry in Colombia (Registraduría Nacional del Estado Civil) through certificates.

Another item that caught the investigators attention was that the 90 % of people who appeared on these lists do not have any relation with the mining activity or gold dealing company, some of them were even homeless and other are death. There were found fictitious and simulated activities.

It was known that DIAN sanctioned Goldex in 2010 since operations carried out during that year were examined and as a result, suppliers and accounting supports were not found.

The Minister of Treasury, Mauricio Cárdenas Santamaría, gauged the social figures concerning the money laundered through the illegal sell of gold: “2.3 billion pesos are resources that we could use to build free housing in Colombia”.

The Minister also added that it has been requested for a long time to deal with mining from large organizations. He said that these kinds of operatives, which are focused on illegal traders, are very important. To be focused on big cartels has an important meaning.

The investigation let the Office of the Attorney General to request the arrest of its  legal representative, accounting director, auditor and private individuals who provided  their names in order to appear as suppliers.

  1. National Directorate of Taxes and Customs (in spanish Dirección de Impuestos y Aduanas Nacionales de Colombia DIAN
  2.  Financial analysis unit (in Spanish Unidad de Información y Análisis Financiero UIAF)