The Bahia emerald is said to be the largest rough emerald in the world
Giant emerald dispute set for LA trial
Posted August 03, 2010 |
The long-running ownership dispute over a gemstone said to be the largest rough emerald in the world is to be resolved in court this September.
The “Bahia emerald” weighs 840 pounds and was unearthed in Brazil in 2001. It is valued at US$400 million ($442.4 million).
US reports paint a blurry picture of the gem’s history. Diamonds.net said the gem found its way from Brazil into America and then onto eBay, where it was priced at US$75,000 ($82,950). The emerald was then reported missing from a vault in California last September and was recovered in Las Vegas three months later, according to the site.
Since its seizure by LA authorities, several parties have claimed ownership of the stone.
Californian gem trader Anthony Thomas, who reportedly paid a Brazilian gem dealer US$60,000 ($66,360) for the emerald in 2001, is one of the many parties trying to claim ownership. He claims he was duped into believing it had been stolen before it could be delivered to him.
The case will head to trial next month after Los Angeles Superior Court Judge John Kronstadt rejected a motion to dismiss Anthony Thomas’s ownership claim.
Until ownership claims are resolved, the emerald will remain in the custody of the LA Sheriff’s Department.