US Precious Metals Dealer Sentenced to 65 Years in $76 Million Gold and Silver Fraud - Stealing gold and silver from customers depositories for people who don't want to keep their metals at home.

https://www.numismaticnews.net/precious-metals-dealer-sentenced-to-65-years-in-76-million-gold-and-silver-fraud

Precious Metals Dealer Sentenced to 65 Years in $76 Million Gold and Silver Fraud​

In a landmark sentencing, 69‑year‑old Robert L. Higgins, owner of First State Depository in Wilmington, Delaware, was handed the maximum 65‑year federal prison sentence on June 17, 2025. Following an eight-day jury trial, he was convicted of mail and wire fraud and income tax evasion.

Higgins’ depository once stored over $100 million in client-held gold, silver bars, and coins. Over the course of a decade, he siphoned off at least $76 million—more than 1,000 customer accounts were discovered missing metals.
His ill‑gotten gains funded a lavish lifestyle: Hawaiian timeshares, foreign vacations, high‑end toys, and more, all while underreporting income on federal tax filings.
U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika described the scope and brazenness of Higgins’ scheme as “shocking,” branding it the largest theft from a precious‑metals depository in U.S. history. The court also ordered Higgins to pay approximately $76.5 million in restitution.

Acting U.S. Attorney Steinberg stated, “Higgins lied to, cheated, and stole from customers who placed their trust in him and his businesses during a 10-year fraud scheme. He took his customers’ metals without their permission and used them to finance his personal life and keep his scheme going, all while failing to report and pay his fair share of income taxes. By robbing his many victims of their hard-earned life savings and retirement funds, Higgins irreparably hurt hundreds of people and their families. I applaud the FBI and the IRS-Criminal Investigation Division for their hard work to hold Higgins accountable.”
"Honest and law-abiding citizens are fed up with the likes of those who use deceit and fraud to line their pockets with other people’s money as well as skirt their tax obligations,” stated Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Philadelphia Field Office.

“The more his greed grew, so did his shameful and selfish scheme. This sentence reflects how egregious Higgins’ crimes truly are. Let this be a lesson to other criminals that the FBI and our partners will not tolerate corruption or those seeking to take advantage of hardworking Americans,” said FBI Baltimore Acting Special Agent in Charge Amanda Koldjeski.
Higgins’ downfall followed a collaboration between the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation Division; prosecutors emphasized that the lengthy sentence reflects the damage to victims’ savings and Higgins’ repeated, deliberate dishonesty.

 

[Just_Somebody]

The guy is already an old fuck. It's good that he's being punished but he's basically going until a shittier retirement home on taxpayer dime by this point

 

[.iota.]

this is your reminder ... if you don't hold it, you don't own it.

 

[Jinn in the phone]

A gold depository? Just basically have some boomer "Hold onto it" for you, the fuck? I thought the whole point of gold was that its a sure form of value you can hold in your hands, save for the future, check to see if its still there every night, pay criminals under the table and let it's glow slowly drive you mad.

 

[Dog-O-Tron 5000v5.0]

His ill‑gotten gains funded a lavish lifestyle: Hawaiian timeshares,

Who the fuck steals $76M in gold to buy a timeshare?

 

[regalterry]

Is he Jewish?

 

[Dawdler]

I would assume 99% of gold certificates floating around are backed by nothing.

 

[TowinKarz]

this is your reminder ... if you don't hold it, you don't own it.

I always like to pull the chains of people who mock me for trusting in fiat when they have "real" money in the form of gold by asking them "Have you ever physically touched any of it? No? Then you're just trusting someone who says the have it, same as me".

 

[.iota.]

I always like to pull the chains of people who mock me for trusting in fiat when they have "real" money in the form of gold by asking them "Have you ever physically touched any of it? No? Then you're just trusting someone who says the have it, same as me".

i prefer silver, and to keep it all in a smaug-like hoard that i curl upon every night.

 

[Comandante Marcos]

this is your reminder ... if you don't hold it, you don't own it.

QUOTED FOR THE FUCKING TO THE EXTREME TRUTH!!!!

I can't imagine that somebody who has made gorillions of dollars would entrust their gold to who is essentially some rando with a big safe. OK, maybe the nepokiddies would, but a lot of times with shit like this we're talking first generation new rich. Of course the guys on the Forbes 400 (hopefully) aren't this autistic with their gold, but when you get down into eight figure net worth first generation wealth, they can get some pretty weird ideas.

 

[The Punished Mitch]

all while failing to report and pay his fair share of income taxes.

For anyone wondering why he got the maximum possible sentence.

 

[FamicomGorby]

Who buys gold and silver and doesn't just keep it in a pirate treasure chest like god intended?

 

[SITHRAK!]

i prefer silver, and to keep it all in a smaug-like hoard that i curl upon every night.

Patrician taste.

Who buys gold and silver and doesn't just keep it in a pirate treasure chest like god intended?

I keep mine in a locked ammo box in a safe.

 

[Loris Yeltsin]

This is him, by the way.

"u mad, bro?"

 

[BelUwUga]

The reason why you deposit gold somewhere like this (hopefully with a better reputation) is that any tax-adavntaged investment/account will strictly prohibit you from physically possessing gold/precious metals if you choose to invest in them with those funds. They would have no way of knowing if you bought the metals pre-tax and then sold/bartered with them as some later time. I.E. The taxman doesn't want you doing to them what this guy did to a bunch of people.