A team of 20 SWAT officers raided Malani Jewelers in Richardson, making it the third jewelry stores in North Texas to be raided, in connection with the $74 million gold scam targeting seniors. 13 employees were detained and crates full of gold were seized. The authorities said this store was one of the network businesses that laundered stolen gold purchased by victims. CBS News reported that when the raid in Richardson was going on Wednesday morning, federal and state law enforcement were simultaneously raiding jewelry stores in Atlanta and Orlando. More than $50 million worth of gold was recovered in the three raids.Last month, the Collin County Sheriff’s Office raided Tilak Jewelers in Irving and Saima Jewelers in Frisco in the same case.

What is the gold bar scam?

Senior citizens are contacted by scamsters who pose as law enforcement officers. These scammers convince the senior citizens that they are in trouble and that they would have to buy gold and hand it over to a courier. While this is a sophisticated and complex criminal network involving many middlemen, these jewelry stores have been buying some of that gold from the couriers, melting it down to jewelry and thus removing the trace of any crime. Malani Jewelers and Saima Jewelers are both accused of running illegal gold melting operations.“It cleaned out his retirement savings,” the daughter of a retiree in Little Elm said, adding that her father died last November without ever recovering the stolen funds.

Gold refinery in Florida under investigation

In a parallel investigation into the same scam, a Seminole County gold dealer in Florida has come under probe. The Orlando Gold Refinery in Altamonte Springs allegedly contacted people, often senior citizens, and impersonated law enforcement.