Press Release: Malca-Amit is issuing the following statement in order to address the complaint filed by Sylla Moussa regarding the alleged disappearance of a 50.66-carat diamond.
Moussa, a national of Guinea and South Africa, tendered the diamond to Malca-Amit for storage in early 2007, declaring a value of $15 million. The following year, Moussa is understood to have defaulted on a debt and relinquished possession and ownership of the diamond to his creditor, Moti Abbas. At that time, Moussa came to Malca-Amit in Geneva and personally delivered the diamond to Abbas, in the presence of witnesses. Abbas then tendered the diamond to Malca-Amit for storage, this time under his name.
Five years later, Moussa made the unfounded and unsubstantiated demand that the diamond be returned to him. Further, rather than making this demand of the diamond’s owner, Moussa turned to Malca-Amit. Needless to say, since Moussa had not been the party storing the diamond since 2008, he was unauthorized to issue any instructions concerning it.
Based upon publicly available information, Moussa appears to have been involved in several criminal wrongdoings in South Africa in the intervening years. He is reported to have been charged with defrauding a South African bank of tens of millions of rands, multiple counts of fraud, theft and money laundering and for violating exchange control regulations. According to press reports, Moussa has also wrongfully accused several South African police officers of diamond robbery.
Malca-Amit was founded in 1963 and is today a leading provider of secured logistics services with offices in over 20 countries. The company is proud that it has never suffered a loss due to theft by an employee and has earned a strong reputation in the diamond and jewelry sector and at Lloyds of London.
“Malca-Amit denies any involvement in what is nothing other than an ownership dispute and is cooperating fully with Swiss authorities to bring the matter to a conclusion,” said Francisco Bautista, the manager of Malca-Amit in Geneva.
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