Suspected getaway driver in Pearson gold heist caged in U.S.
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The Brampton man accused of being the getaway driver in the brazen 2023 gold heist at Toronto’s Pearson airport is behind bars in the U.S.
Durante King-McLean pleaded guilty to arms trafficking charges in Pennsylvania.
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Suspected getaway driver in Pearson gold heist caged in U.S. Back to video
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Prosecutors alleged that the gun-running was part of a scheme to wash some of the $20 million in stolen gold with weapons.
King-McLean was pinched by Pennsylvania state troopers in September 2023, just months after the big caper at Pearson. He has been in custody ever since.
The U.S. Justice Department alleged in court filings that King-McLean illegally entered the country and then travelled north from Florida along the iron highway, stopping to buy various weapons. His final destination was Canada.
He inked his guilty plea earlier this month, copping to conspiracy to traffic firearms. King-McLean now faces 15 years in a U.S. federal prison. A judge must finalize the deal. King-McLean is scheduled to be in court on May 14 in Harrisburg.
According to cops, officers found 65 firearms allegedly destined for the streets of Canada when they pulled him over. PeelRegional Police allege King-McLean used money from the heist to purchase the guns.
Investigators say King-Mclean was the wheelman of the white van that drove out of an Air Canada cargo building with more than $20 million worth of gold, in addition to a large amount of foreign currency.
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The probe into the Pearson heist turned into a long slog.
According to internal documents obtained by The Fifth Estate, suspect Arsalan Chaudhary may have been the mastermind of the biggest heist in Canadian history. At this money, he faces charges of theft over $5,000 and possession of property obtained by crime in Canada.
Two other suspects implicated by U.S. law enforcement in the arms trafficking probe are Archit Grover, now awaiting trial in Canada, and Prasath Paramalingam, whose current whereabouts are unknown. Paramalingam allegedly helped King-McLean slip into the U.S., buy the guns and booked a Florida Airbnb for his cohort.
So far, it isn’t clear whether King-McLean’s plea has a bearing on the gold heist investigation or whether he will be extradited here.
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