Colombia investigates gold trades for suspected cocaine money-laundering

“The objective of the investigation is to determine if Goldex was used to undertake asset laundering transactions.

“The Attorney General’s Office is reviewing the collected evidence with a view to making a decision on whether to impute or shelve”, said the Attorney General.

Goldex denies any wrongdoing and said it doesn’t export gold to Switzerland and its commercial ties with a Miami refinery plant under investigation have been temporarily halted.

The company said it is collaborating in the inquiry and last year voluntary opened its offices to investigators, to show that its exports were legitimate and Goldex had no contact with any illegal groups.

Goldex said it was not under formal investigation for money laundering or any other crime.

The alleged gold scheme would make up only part of a money-laundering operation that the Colombian government estimates at £6.5bn a year.

Colombia exported 58 tonnes of gold last year and 77 tonnes in 2012, according to the country’s statistics agency.

More than half of that may have been smuggled into the country and booked as local production, with last year’s 28pc gold price decline tempering illegal activity this year, said Mr Ortega.

Gold was apparently smuggled from neighbouring countries including Venezuela, Panama, Mexico and Chile.

Mr Ortega said gold is smuggled into the Colombian jungle town of Inirida in small quantities by river from Venezuela, as well as by sea from Panama.

He added that seizure in the city of Bucaramanga several years ago revealed bars stamped by Mexico.

Illegal gold mining is a key source of revenue for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, according to Colombia’s rural police.

The government is working to combat illicit transactions and regulate the informal mining sector as part of its efforts to end decades of drug-related violence.

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