 "Who is Archit Grover, the Indian-origin man arrested in Canada’s biggest gold, cash heist?")
In April, Canada witnessed one of its biggest gold and cash heists in history.
“This story is a sensational one and one which, probably, we jokingly say, belongs in a Netflix series,” Peel police chief Nishan Duraiappah had said at the time.
In the latest development in the brazen multimillion-dollar gold heist at Toronto’s main airport, an Indian-origin man has been arrested in the country.
This comes almost a month after the arrest of five others involved in the theft.
Let’s take a closer look.
The arrest
On 6 May, investigators arrested and charged Archit Grover at Pearson International Airport in Toronto as he flew in from India, according to the police.
The police had issued a Canada-wide warrant for his arrest earlier, according to PTI.
The 36-year-old is charged with theft over Canadian dollars 5,000 and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, police said in a statement on Thursday.
Grover, also known as Archie, was held for a bail hearing and attended the Ontario Court of Justice in Brampton.
He is also being indicted in the US, alongside the man accused of being the driver who made off with the fold, for firearm-related charges, as per The Star.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHis defence lawyer, Andrew Furgiuele, told The Star that Grover learnt about the arrest warrant in India.
“After discovering the Canada-wide warrant, he returned promptly so that he could come back and face these charges. He will answer them in court when the time to do so arrives,” said Furgiuele, who declined to answer further questions.
Notably, Grover is the seventh person to be arrested in the case related to the heist.
The ‘Netflix-worthy’ heist
On 17 April 2023, an air cargo container carrying gold bars and foreign currency was stolen from a secure storage facility in Pearson using fake paperwork, Peels Regional Police said, as per PTI.
The gold and currency had arrived on an Air Canada flight from Zurich, Switzerland, to Pearson International Airport in Toronto.
Shortly after the flight’s landing, the cargo was offloaded and transported to a separate location on airport property.
It was reported missing to the police a day later.
The stolen cargo contained 6600 bars of .9999 pure gold, weighing 400 kilogrammes, valued at over 20 million dollars and CAD 2.5 million worth in foreign currency.
Subsequently, the Canadian Police initiated an investigation, collaborating with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) in the US.
In an earlier statement, the police said that investigators seized one kilogramme of gold worth approximately Canadian dollars 89,000, believed to be from the theft, smelting equipment, and approximately 434,000 dollars in Canadian currency.
According to the National Post, police earlier alleged that some of the profit from the stolen gold was used to fund a cross-border gun-running operation.
Last month, two Indian-origin – Parmpal Sidhu, 54, and Amit Jalota, 40 – both from Ontario, were arrested in the case along with Ammad Chaudhary, 43, Ali Raza, 37, and Prasath Paramalingam, 35, PTI reported.
Besides, Canada-wide warrants were issued for Simran Preet Panesar, 31, from Brampton, who was also an Air Canada employee at the time of the theft and Arsalan Chaudhary, 42, from Mississauga, the statement said.
According to the police, at least two former Air Canada employees allegedly helped in the audacious theft, one of whom is now in custody, while an arrest warrant has been issued for the other.
A month after the Pennsylvania gold theft, Durante King-Mclean, 25, a resident of Brampton, was arrested for allegedly driving a car carrying 65 handguns in the trunk on its way to Canada. There, he is still in custody pending his trial, as per Global News.
Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick confirmed Sidhu and Panesar’s employment with the national flag carrier.
“One left the company prior to the arrests announced today and the second has been suspended,” he said.
With inputs from agencies
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
