$2.6M Diamond Theft at NamGem (Update 2)

A "substantial" amount of rough and polished diamonds have been reported missing from NamGem, the Namdeb cutting and polishing factory in Namibia, the company said on Tuesday. The value of the missing goods is estimated at $2.6 million.

The theft was discovered Monday morning when a safe that contained the missing was opened. NamGem Chairman Kennedy Hamutenya told the press that rough diamonds worth $2.1 million, polished diamonds worth $480,000, and partly polished stones worth about $56,000 were among the missing goods.

In a statement to the Namibian press, Hamutenya said that the Namibian Protected Resource Unit (Diamond Police), as well as the Namdeb/De Beers Marine Namibia security investigations team "are working round the clock to investigate the incident."

Work at the factory continues, while the investigation is ongoing.

The theft is a blow to Diamond Trading Company (DTC) Sightholder Lazare Kaplan International (LKI) that manages the factory on behalf of De Beers. In the past couple of years LKI is under great financial duress, repeatedly failing to submit its financial reports to the AMEX were its share are being traded.