With Success Comes Peril...

...but this particular peril seems counterintuitive. Buyers of physical bullion are well attuned to the hazards of theft; that's what keeps gold-storage outfits in business. It also gets safes sold, and gets holders discussing creative ways of storing bullion so as to fool, distract or deter thieves. Whether burying the bullion in a secret spot, storing it in a cemented safe in the basement, making up or buying a book with pages cut out, or stuffing it in the bottom of the sock drawer with fakes in the jewelry box, there are myriad of ways to protect bullion from the hands of thieves.

But, a mining company would seem to have little use for such measures. Why would a thief steal a ton of $100 ore? As for the refined stuff, it would seem that any mining executives with common sense would have the good stuff guarded when transported.

Still, thievery is intruding. The CBC News article warns Quebec miners to be on the watch for organized crime.

Quebec provincial police are touring northern Quebec to warn gold miners and people in the mining industry they might be targeted by organized crime.

Sgt. Stéphane Mailloux said high gold prices make the mines a tempting target for criminals.

"A bar of gold is worth $900,000 to $1 million US right now," he said. "Obviously that's attractive to organized crime. We're looking into what type of crime we might encounter as a result."

Mailloux said investigators have already met with about 50 miners in Quebec's Abitibi-Témiscamingue region.

He said the information sessions will continue for several more weeks and include a breakdown of how criminal organizations operate.

"Our goal was not to panic the gold miners and the mining industry or to stress them out about this," said Mailloux. "It's really a preventive measure."

There's already been a brazen theft of 1500 oz. from a mine in Mexico.