Nine people, including Air Canada employees, are facing charges in connection to the Toronto Pearson airport gold heist that was carried out exactly one year ago, Peel Regional Police said. Police announced the arrests with the U.S. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Bureau at a press conference on Wednesday. The joint investigation, dubbed “Project 24K,” is short for 24 karats of gold.
Peel police chief Nishan Duraiappah said “This story is a sensational one and one which probably, we jokingly say, belongs in a Netflix series,”. The nine accused were identified, including 25-year-old Durante King-Mclean, 34-year-old Prasath Paramalingam and 36-year-old Archit Grover, all of Brampton, among others. King-Mclean and Grover remain wanted Canada-wide. Parmpal Sidhu, 54, of Brampton (Air Canada employee), Amit Jalota, 40, of Oakville, Ammad Chaudhary, 43, of Georgetown, Ali Raza, 37, of Toronto, and Paramalingam were taken into custody and released on conditions. Canada-wide arrest warrants have been issued for Simran Preet Panesar, 31, of Brampton, a former Air Canada employee working with the airline at the time of the heist, Arsalan Chaudhary, 42 of Brampton, and Grover.
Details of the 2023 gold heist:
The flight carrying a cargo of 6,600 gold bars landed from Zurich, Switzerland, at Pearson airport just before 4 p.m. on April 17, 2023. Police have said the shipments, believed to have been stored in a container roughly five to six square feet, were deposited at an Air Canada warehouse at the airport two hours later. Just before 3 a.m. on April 18, 2023, Peel Regional Police reported the cargo, which weighed 400 kilograms and contained gold valued at over $20 million and over $2 million in foreign currency, missing.
