Turkey has become the world’s largest supplier of painted stones. According to the data for the first quarter, Turkish companies managed to sell the record amount of these stones worth $36 million.
The deal was settled in summer 2020, but the buyer received the product only this spring. However, it turned out that the purchaser had ordered something else instead of painted stones.
Swiss company Mercuria Energy Group says that it has been the victim of cargo fraud. It paid $36 million for copper but received copper-colored paving stones. In fact, the Swiss company had no intention to buy colored stones. Now, the company is seeking redress and has already issued a lawsuit against Turkish supplier Bietsan.
Some experienced market participants suppose that there is no use to make a mountain out of a molehill. The fact is that such deals are always insured and Mercuria Energy will receive compensation and return its money in any case. However, it appears that almost all the contracts had been forged. Only one out of seven documents used by the Turkish company to insure the cargo was real.
According to the investigation, fraudsters carried out the following operation. The copper was initially loaded into containers. After that, an inspection company fixed seals on these containers. However, later, someone reopened these containers, replaced copper with painting stones, and placed new seals.
