Everyone has of gem scams in India and Thailand belongs. Compared with the sums at stake in the German version, “peanuts” are however… With rubies, sapphires and emeralds of inferiorer quality in sealed plastic boxes at a fraction of the specified in the accompanying, pompous “opinion”, but grossly exaggerated values for sale are offered. The victims are careless bankers who blinded by the serious issued opinions and accept the stones to the credit protection, as well as private investors who smell big-business. Several times turned people to us, which had such gems offered debtor or already turned on. The trick is always the same.
The provider specify E.g. acute need for money as a reason for why they are willing to part with the stones for ridiculously little money. Due to the urgency, no time to check the opinion remains the donors. Finally they go into business, because at a purchase price of only 10% of the estimate anything can happen, or? It can and will! Opinion, in which values are certified by several hundred euro inferior stones, which were bought by a few cents per carat in Asia are the hooks. To give you an idea of the magnitude: I was in the 80s and 90s several times by court experts consulted.
Opaque, missfarbige Ruby cabochons, which no jeweler to only five shillings would have bought had been rated up to 2000 shillings p.Ct and enfeoffed with 10% this “value”. The damage totals were correspondingly high. All me so far known fraud attempts after this scam were common to the following points:-the opinions come from not well-known internationally, mostly German Gemmological laboratories, never by worldwide known and recognized institutes and laboratories like GIA, Gubelin, GRS (Dr. Peretti), DSEF etc. In one case, a Polish was in another a British laboratory of the exhibitor. Note: the major institutes issue only certificates of authenticity and value estimates.