Police in Central Texas warned citizens to be careful after a person was arrested on Monday for attempting to sell fake gold to locals.
The Kerrville Police Department posted a warning to Facebook after officers arrested a man who allegedly tried to sell gold bars to a local business.
“All that glitters is not gold! KPD arrested a suspect today who tried to sell these counterfeit gold bars to a local business,” the post read. “Fortunately, the business had the means to check before buying. Our investigation is still in progress. If you bought gold recently, we recommend you take it to a reputable jeweler to ensure it’s the real thing.”
Gold is seen as a stable repository of wealth during stressful economic times. Inflation, which erodes the value of central bank currencies like the U.S. dollar, commonly drives gold demand.
According to the World Gold Council, demand for gold rose 18% in 2022, reaching an 11-year high. This rush, the council said, was fueled by investor and central bank purchases in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and other geopolitical uncertainties.
Forbes magazine cautioned that the best way to avoid counterfeit gold is to only purchase it from the London Bullion Market because it is guaranteed and follows a chain of custody. Failing that, Forbes listed several characteristics to inspect on potential purchases, including weight, diameter and thickness, and price.
One final hint it offered was that real gold is not magnetic.
Kerrville Police recommended taking jewelry or other gold items to a reputable jeweler to verify authenticity. Officials also advised citizens to contact police if they believe they’ve purchased a counterfeit.
The Dallas Express contacted Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot to ask about his office’s prosecutorial discretion on counterfeit and forgeries but did not receive a response to our inquiry by the time this article was published.
The City of Dallas has seen a significant drop in forgeries and counterfeit arrests in 2023. It is unclear if this is due to less fraud or reprioritized policing efforts.
According to the Dallas Police crime analytics dashboard, counterfeiting and forgery crimes are down 43.2% year-to-date. DPD has received 63 reports of these crimes this year so far, compared to 111 a year ago.
