4 ms·

Nobody but a fool does that kind of business deal without verifications. There are companies you can pay to inspect, verify and insure the product at source.

hourislate 6y ago
You must not have read the article. From the article It appears that copper was initially loaded into the first shipment of containers, before being surveyed by an inspection company. Seals used to prevent fraud were then affixed to the containers. The product was real and loaded into shipping containers. After it was inspected and sealed the fraudsters switched out the cargo as it left the port. There was even Insurance fraud with some group providing fake Insurance coverage (one real policy with the rest being forgeries) for the seller. These firms aren't fools, they do this everyday and understand what to do, shit happens.
JaakkoP 6y ago
They did do an inspection and sealed the containers right after. The "swap" to painted rocks happened only after the inspection. Supposedly, they also had an insurance until it turned out 6 out of 7 of their insurance contracts were forged. To me this screams like an inside job. How is it possible that the thieves can get into the ships at night, spend hours hauling copper and paving stones and nobody notices.
- bellyfullofbac 6y ago
  I would guess it would be easier to load up the bogey container with rocks, and since the authorities are in it, get a copy of the seal affixed to the bogey container (the article even mentions fake seals). The article also mentions shipment. Does it mean the containers were already on the ships, or just on its way on the back of a truck? It would be "easy" for the truck full of copper in a sealed container to leave a place, and a different truck to show up at the port with a container with a label that says "Copper for Mercuria, destination Qinqdao" and a "good" seal. Or if it's all at the port, just pay off the crane operator to load up your bogey onto the ship, and load up the real stuff onto your truck.

hourislate 6y ago

You must not have read the article. From the article It appears that copper was initially loaded into the first shipment of containers, before being surveyed by an inspection company. Seals used to prevent fraud were then affixed to the containers. The product was real and loaded into shipping containers. After it was inspected and sealed the fraudsters switched out the cargo as it left the port. There was even Insurance fraud with some group providing fake Insurance coverage (one real policy with the rest being forgeries) for the seller. These firms aren't fools, they do this everyday and understand what to do, shit happens.

JaakkoP 6y ago

They did do an inspection and sealed the containers right after. The "swap" to painted rocks happened only after the inspection. Supposedly, they also had an insurance until it turned out 6 out of 7 of their insurance contracts were forged. To me this screams like an inside job. How is it possible that the thieves can get into the ships at night, spend hours hauling copper and paving stones and nobody notices.

bellyfullofbac 6y ago
I would guess it would be easier to load up the bogey container with rocks, and since the authorities are in it, get a copy of the seal affixed to the bogey container (the article even mentions fake seals). The article also mentions shipment. Does it mean the containers were already on the ships, or just on its way on the back of a truck? It would be "easy" for the truck full of copper in a sealed container to leave a place, and a different truck to show up at the port with a container with a label that says "Copper for Mercuria, destination Qinqdao" and a "good" seal. Or if it's all at the port, just pay off the crane operator to load up your bogey onto the ship, and load up the real stuff onto your truck.