Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson Airport heist investigation

Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.

Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.

So, where did 400 kilograms of gold valued at an estimated $20 million go?

That’s one of the burning questions investigators are now working to answer after charging nine suspects in connection with the April 17, 2023 heist.

Six of those suspects have been taken into custody, while three others remain outstanding.

“The missing piece (of this investigation) is where did it go?” CTV News crime expert Mark Mendelson, himself a former Toronto police homicide detective, said during an interview with CP24 on Wednesday.

“Part of doing this heist was that they needed to have purchasers readily available. This isn’t three bucks or three pounds worth of gold you stick in a knapsack and then you walk out the door with it. It's almost 1,000 pounds in gold. You can't just go to your local cash-for-gold guy at some strip mall and say, ‘Hey, I got a trunk full of gold how much you're going to give me for this?’ So they have to have had some plans in order.”

Police said on Wednesday that two of the accused in the theft worked for Air Canada at the time of the incident, while another owned a jewelry store in Toronto.