Allegations of terrorist financing and money laundering
The OIG investigation was triggered when a news reporter contacted the U.S. Mint in June of 2019 alleging that the Mint had purchased gold from a supplier refiner which had originally been sourced from illegal mines in Colombia, South America. As the Mint was legally obligated to purchase the vast majority of its gold bullion from U.S. sources, this was a surprising allegation.
But the allegations were far more serious than a lack of proper licensing. “Reportedly, --these mines were linked to illicit activities that included terrorist financing and money laundering,--” the OIG wrote.
Following their communication with the reporter in the summer of 2019, the Mint’s senior management reached out to the OIG, and the latter began their investigation almost immediately.
“The objectives of our audit were to determine if the Mint received illicit gold from its suppliers and if there were weaknesses in the Mint’s controls over the acquisition of gold bullion,” the OIG wrote. “We conducted field work from June 2019 through November 2019 with subsequent follow-up through April 2020.”
The draft report was ready in August 2020, just over one year after the initial allegations were brought to light. But --the report would not see the light of day for nearly four more years.--
[looking for a fren to crosspost to QR gen main, pls]
