In a statement of claim filed in Federal Court and first reported by Glen McGregor on Substack, Brink’s says the shipment of gold and cash was delivered to Air Canada in Zurich, a Swiss financial centre, and loaded aboard Air Canada Flight AC881, a daily passenger and cargo flight to Toronto, on April 17.
Brink’s claims Air Canada provided woeful security despite knowing the high-value contents of the load.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
Air Canada would not comment on the lawsuit, the heist, or the allegations.
The money, declared as “BANKNOTES”, was being shipped to the Vancouver Bullion and Currency Exchange, according to the lawsuit.
Around the same time, Valcambi SA, a precious metals refining company in Switzerland, hired Brink’s to transport 400.19 kilos of gold — valued at more than $20.4 million — to Toronto.
The gold, declared as “GOLDBARS”, was being sent to the Toronto Dominion Bank in Toronto, the suit says.
The two shipments were combined into one air cargo container about the size of a large office desk.
The plane landed at Toronto’s Pearson airport around 4:20 p.m. The shipping container was unloaded and moved to an Air Canada bonded warehouse at the edge of the airport at about 5:50 p.m., the lawsuit claims.
“Upon receipt of the Fraudulent Waybill, AC personnel released the Shipments to the unidentified individual, following which the unidentified individual absconded with the cargo,” the lawsuit claims.
“AC accepted the Fraudulent Waybill from the unidentified individual without verifying its authenticity in any way.
“Had AC made the necessary and appropriate inquiries in the circumstances, the unidentified individual’s ability to steal the cargo entrusted to its care would have been entirely avoided,” according to the Brink’s claim.
Brink’s sent the nature of the cargo contents, their declared values, and flight information to Air Canada by email when booking the cargo shipment, on or about April 14. The emails were confirmed by Air Canada the same day, according to the lawsuit.
“AC Secure ensures the safe and secure transportation of specific commodities including goods with a declared value of CAD/USD $1,000 per kilogram or more, or when a shipper purchases insurance in the same amount per kilogram, regardless of the commodity,” its website says.
Commodities using AC Secure often include gold, silver, gems, money, watches, jewelry, stocks and bonds.
AC Secure costs more than regular air shipments.
Brink’s transportation contract with the company means Brink’s took on responsibility for the value of the load if lost in transit.
Brink’s now seeks to redeem that loss from Air Canada.
The lawsuit accuses Air Canada of being “reckless in its operation of the AC Secure program” by failing to adequately secure the cargo.
Brink’s claims damages of 13.6 million Swiss Francs, representing the declared value of the missing gold, and US$1,945,843, the value of the missing money.
Brink’s also seeks special damages of an unspecified amount and costs of the legal action.
The lawsuit says that the company was notified in March of ongoing upgrades by Air Canada designed to “build an improved process” for AC Secure, including “better technology enhancements, handovers and (an) improved tracing method.”
But, the suit claims, the airline failed to implement improvements “properly or at all.”
The lawsuit was filed in Federal Court because international shipments are regulated by the Montreal Convention, an international treaty that is incorporated into Canadian law.
“This is still a very active ongoing investigation, and information will be released when investigators believe it will not interfere with the investigation’s integrity. At this time, we have no further information to release.”
Brink’s declined to comment beyond their statement of claim. TD Bank, Valcambi SA, and the Vancouver Bullion and Currency Exchange did not respond to requests for comment prior to deadline.
