Perth Mint thief stole gold to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands ('18)

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dualstow
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Perth Mint thief stole gold to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands ('18)

Post by dualstow » Thu Jul 25, 2019 12:28 pm

While looking for news on the Perth Mint data breach - thread - I saw this from last year.
Apologies if it has already been posted.
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Perth Mint thief stole $55,000 in gold coins, bars to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands
He was caught after an audit was conducted by the Mint's security, which revealed five gold bars and eight gold coins were missing from a vault.
...
"Quite simply, Mr Viola wasn't coping with the fact that his relationship was failing and he also wasn't coping with the fact that he couldn't afford to maintain a lifestyle which was necessary for that relationship to be maintained."

Mr Allen urged Judge John Prior to impose a suspended jail term, describing Viola as "a very fragile person" who had "a complicated psychological background".
...
Ms Keogh said Viola used his role as a technician to get access to all areas of the Mint and had convinced security staff to change their protocols so that computer hard drives were not x-rayed, by falsely claiming it would damage data.

He also fended off one security officer's attempt to examine a computer tower by telling the officer it was sensitive and would be damaged if inspected properly.
RIP Marcello Gandini
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Re: Perth Mint thief stole gold to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands ('18)

Post by europeanwizard » Thu Jul 25, 2019 1:01 pm

I actually think it's not super bad news. He was caught, and it got on the news instead of being buried somehow. Not a customer at the Perth, but they'd still be on my short list.
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Re: Perth Mint thief stole gold to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands ('18)

Post by Xan » Thu Jul 25, 2019 1:46 pm

dualstow wrote:
Thu Jul 25, 2019 12:28 pm
He also fended off one security officer's attempt to examine a computer tower by telling the officer it was sensitive and would be damaged if inspected properly.
That's pretty gutsy. If he hadn't been able to convince him, it would have been all over right there.
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Re: Perth Mint thief stole gold to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands ('18)

Post by dualstow » Thu Jul 25, 2019 7:51 pm

I like how they tried to argue he was a fragile person.
RIP Marcello Gandini
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Re: Perth Mint thief stole gold to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands ('18)

Post by Ad Orientem » Sat Jul 27, 2019 2:23 pm

One of the reasons I like the Perth Mint is that your account is insured by the government. Conceding that the future is unpredictable, that's about as safe as your likely to get.
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Re: Perth Mint thief stole gold to fund fiancee's lifestyle demands ('18)

Post by dualstow » Sat Jul 27, 2019 2:32 pm

It certainly seems safer than an American bank box. I mean, bank box mishaps, like shark attacks, are few and far between. The analogy continues to the degree that I only have to hear about a few of them before I start overthinking.

Moreover, it is both ironic and disturbing that something that is designed to be safe from thieves can fall prey to the very stewards of it, via clerical errors and lack of care. (I’m talking about the nytimes article on bank boxes, not the Perth Mint).

There is no perfect solution, but when/if I’m a bit richer, I might entrust the bulk of my gold to Perth. Let’s see how this datarrhea plays out.
RIP Marcello Gandini
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