Stolen diamonds database

[mastercut]

Hi,
does anyone know whether there is any stolen diamonds database? I mean certified diamonds. Thank you.

 

[Ellen]

Ok, I''ll bite. Are you wanting to buy stolen, certified diamonds??

 

[litebrite]

I am hoping this q is because you want to know if a lost or stolen diamond has turned up so that you can search for it by inscription number. Not that I would want you to have the heartache of having a diamond stolen or lost.

 

[D&T]

interesting. I''d like to know how you find diamonds with inscription if it is reported lost or stolen? or if anyone has had this experience with a stolen/lost diamond returning to them?

 

[Ellen]

Date: 8/12/2009 9:21:28 AM
Author: litebrite
I am hoping this q is because you want to know if a lost or stolen diamond has turned up so that you can search for it by inscription number. Not that I would want you to have the heartache of having a diamond stolen or lost.

Ah, that would make more sense.... *not enough coffee when reading initially*

mc, I am sorry if this is the reason you are asking. If so, checking your local pawn shops would be a good first step.

 

[Moh 10]

I''m not sure how useful a database would be.

I think anyone who would steal diamonds would know they can get one recut for a few hundred bucks.

 

[oldminer]

Inscriptions are readily removed without any cost on many diamonds, too. Just a bit of street smarts and one can alter these markings.

 

[mastercut]

Many thanks to all.

Date: 8/12/2009 8:09:22 AM
Author: Ellen
Ok, I'll bite. Are you wanting to buy stolen, certified diamonds??

Yes I want to buy a stolen certified diamond and now I am just looking for a widest choice

Just joking.
I meant actually whether there is a database where anyone can register his/her stolen diamond and then someone who is going to purchase a second hand diamond could check it (GIA report number). That´s all.

Of course I know that any thief with IQ higher than 100 would have the inscribed number removed or even recut the diamond, but this was not the point of my question.

 

[Ellen]

Date: 8/12/2009 12:25:38 PM
Author: mastercut
Many thanks to all.

Date: 8/12/2009 8:09:22 AM
Author: Ellen
Ok, I''ll bite. Are you wanting to buy stolen, certified diamonds??

Yes I want to buy a stolen certified diamond and now I am just looking for a widest choice

Just joking.
I meant actually whether there is a database where anyone can register his/her stolen diamond and then someone who is going to purchase a second hand diamond could check it (GIA report number). That´s all.

Of course I know that any thief with IQ higher than 100 would have the inscribed number removed or even recut the diamond, but this was not the point of my question.

Ok, I deserved that.

I really do blame it on too early/not enough coffee though.

 

[Todd Gray]

Date: 8/12/2009 12:34:10 PM
Author: Ellen

Date: 8/12/2009 12:25:38 PM

Author: mastercut

Many thanks to all.

Date: 8/12/2009 8:09:22 AM

Author: Ellen

Ok, I''ll bite. Are you wanting to buy stolen, certified diamonds??

Yes I want to buy a stolen certified diamond and now I am just looking for a widest choice

Just joking.

I meant actually whether there is a database where anyone can register his/her stolen diamond and then someone who is going to purchase a second hand diamond could check it (GIA report number). That´s all.

Of course I know that any thief with IQ higher than 100 would have the inscribed number removed or even recut the diamond, but this was not the point of my question.

Ok, I deserved that.

I really do blame it on too early/not enough coffee though.

Since the question has been asked, the answer is a slightly pre-mature "yes" a short time ago I started building a web site called
GemTrace which is designed to create a correlation between the information inscribed on the girdle edge of a diamond and the registered owner in hopes that we can convince law enforcement agencies to use the web site to possibly identify diamond jewelry which has been recovered if an inscription is present on the girdle edge of the diamond (or colored gem which is rare).

I was hoping to officially launch the web site a few weeks ago, but we''re still working out some minor bugs which essentially affect nothing more than my perfectionist nature - one of which is that search function currently returns all gem stones listed in the registry rather than only the specific gem stone searched for which is something we hope to have perfected by the end of the week.

One of the things I was going to ask Price Scope members when I launched the site was for your thoughts and insight since I truly value your opinion...

 

[Ellen]

Awesome Todd. And good for you.

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 8/12/2009 5:38:39 AM
Author:mastercut
Hi,
does anyone know whether there is any stolen diamonds database? I mean certified diamonds. Thank you.

My friend Todd Gray is working on one as we type. I think it was to have been ready a week or three ago, but we all know how computer programing goes...

I will ask him to come look at this thread.

Wink

 

[WinkHPD]

Date: 8/12/2009 12:57:29 PM
Author: Ellen
Awesome Todd. And good for you.

LOL! As usual, Todd has beaten me to the punch.

I will let him give you the details when he is ready, but when he told me about it I thought it a great idea.

I am well aware that smart crooks can remove engravings, but by their very nature, most crooks are not smart, and many of those who are, are too lazy to do things that they know that they should.

Wink

 

[Ellen]

Date: 8/12/2009 1:28:19 PM
Author: Wink

Date: 8/12/2009 12:57:29 PM
Author: Ellen
Awesome Todd. And good for you.

LOL! As usual, Todd has beaten me to the punch.

I will let him give you the details when he is ready, but when he told me about it I thought it a great idea.

I am well aware that smart crooks can remove engravings, but by their very nature, most crooks are not smart, and many of those who are, are too lazy to do things that they know that they should.

Wink

So true. lol

 

[Paul-Antwerp]

Date: 8/12/2009 1:28:19 PM
Author: Wink

Date: 8/12/2009 12:57:29 PM
Author: Ellen
Awesome Todd. And good for you.

LOL! As usual, Todd has beaten me to the punch.

I will let him give you the details when he is ready, but when he told me about it I thought it a great idea.

I am well aware that smart crooks can remove engravings, but by their very nature, most crooks are not smart, and many of those who are, are too lazy to do things that they know that they should.

Wink

The nice thing about Todd''s initiative is that if it is widely used, it will have other effects. A cutter asked to remove an inscription must likely consider this a red flag, and if he could have checked the stone on GemTrace, he could be considered an accomplice if he just removed the inscription without checking.

Live long,

 

[toozy929]

Good point, Paul. Way to go, Todd. That''s awesome!

 

[Ellen]

Ditto, very good point Paul.

 

[echelon6]

Is there a way to trace stolen diamonds by its angles / cut specs? so that even if the inscription is removed, it can be traced if submitted for recertification?

The reason is a thief will eventually submit the diamond for recertification if he/she wants to sell it. Hopefully theres a system that can backmatch the measured angles / stats of all diamonds to a stolen diamond database.

 

[bright&shiny]

This made me think of QueenMumm''s situation... and I personally like the idea. It would be great to be able to register an inscription, as well as certificate information (the inclusion or flaw plots). But that''s based on how I envision using it.

How do you envision such a db to be used? My assumption would be for vendors,but wouldn''t this rely on vendors to check it? If so, what would be their incentive to do so? Perhaps it would be most useful for police, the ever-awesome PSrs, and unfortunate victims?

 

[Todd Gray]

Date: 8/13/2009 11:53:58 PM
Author: bright&shiny
This made me think of QueenMumm''s situation... and I personally like the idea. It would be great to be able to register an inscription, as well as certificate information (the inclusion or flaw plots). But that''s based on how I envision using it.

How do you envision such a db to be used? My assumption would be for vendors,but wouldn''t this rely on vendors to check it? If so, what would be their incentive to do so? Perhaps it would be most useful for police, the ever-awesome PSrs, and unfortunate victims?

I don''t know whether the diamond stolen on the way to QueenMum was inscribed or not, but if it was I will register the diamond as stolen in the database if JA wants to provide me with the information - I say JA instead of Stephan because they will be the technical owner of the diamond since Stephan is getting his money back from JA.

It is true that an inscription can be polished off of the girdle edge of a diamond easily enough, but my experience with criminals is that they are not all that bright! I was a cadet for a police department when I was younger and we used to recover stolen jewelry during drug raids all the time, the problem is that without a database like GemTrace to be able to crosscheck inscriptions to registered owners, the inscriptions are useless.

Since the service is new, I imagine it is going to take some time for it to be effective. Right now the only diamonds registered in it are Valerie''s which are all laser inscribed and thus make for a good test group... The site is now functional and the tweaks that I need to make will be improvements in form design, etc. and we''ll start getting the word out to law enforcement agencies, trade magazines, etc. and with a little luck maybe the recovery units at the police departments will start crosschecking inscribed gems against the DB before sending things off to auction.

Who knows maybe a pawn shop or two will take a moment to run a search to determine whether the diamond being offered to them is registered or not. I know that pawn dealers get a bad reputation, but I''ve actually known a few who were pretty reputable over the years. I have advised the Property Room of the service, they are a clearing house for items recovered by law enforcement agencies...