Air Canada Denies Responsibility In $20M Gold Heist Lawsuit

Air Canada has now issued a statement in court about the massive cargo theft that took place earlier this year in its warehouse. The gold and cash that were robbed due to breaches in security protocol shocked everyone in the way the theft was carried out and raised several questions regarding the security protocols of such precious cargo.

Air Canada denies responsibility

Air Canada, which faces a lawsuit for the theft of precious gold cargo and cash amounting to $20 million, has now responded in a statement to the court. The airline has been accused of negligence by Brink’s, a Miami-based transport and security services provider that was responsible for transporting 400.19 kg of gold from Switzerland to Toronto.

Photo: sockagphoto | Shutterstock

Air Canada, however, denies that its security was negligent and says that the company should have declared the value of the cargo and paid extra for more protection. The National Post had access to the statement filed in court by the carrier, which said,

The carrier says that Brink’s opted for the standard rate for the AC Secure services product and was fully aware of the consequences for not opting to insure or have added security of the gold.

How it all happened

While the theft in itself was shocking, the way in which it was carried out was remarkable. The lawsuit filed by Brink’s said that the gold and $2 million in cash were transported in one container on Air Canada’s daily passenger service between Zurich and Toronto on flight AC881 in April.

Photo: Michael Derrer Fuchs | Shutterstock

The plane reached Toronto at around 16:20, and the cargo was transported to the airline’s warehouse by 17:50 but was gone within an hour of arrival at the facility. An unidentified individual walked in and presented to the Air Canada personnel a fraudulent airway bill, which was accepted, and the shipment released.

It was one of the largest thefts in Canada’s history and raised several questions regarding the safety protocols of Air Canada’s cargo operations. Simple Flying has contacted Air Canada for a comment and will update the article once we receive a response.

With both parties pointing fingers at each other for the theft, it remains to be seen how this court battle plays out in the coming months.

What do you make of this development? Please leave a comment below.