A New York court and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have charged diamond dealer Edward St. Mary III with wire fraud for stealing over $3 million in diamonds from an Indian supplier.
St. Mary, who was arrested on May 20, met with the owner of an India-based international export company in April 2021 and agreed to purchase uncut diamonds. Over the next couple of months, the two exchanged numerous messages regarding the sale, eventually settling on 287 carats of diamonds for approximately $3.3 million, according to a filing Wednesday in the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. During the negotiation period, St. Mary sent fraudulent documents and misrepresented himself regarding his bank balance and his ability to pay for the stones, the filing stated.
In June of that year, the owner of the diamond company shipped the stones to the US via a security company that was supposed to provide them to St. Mary once he submitted payment. The diamonds arrived in the US a week later, but St. Mary didn’t arrive to pick them up and made excuses to the Indian supplier about why he had not paid. Then, in August, he collected them from the shipping company’s New York location, without paying for them and with no authorization from the Indian exporter, the filing alleges. He then made false statements to the supplier stating the diamonds were still in the care of the shipper and gave excuses as to why he hadn’t paid yet. By November, he began making false statements purporting he had paid for the stones and sent the owner a fraudulent account statement showing a wire transfer of over $3 million.
By December, St. Mary admitted he had not paid for the diamonds, but blamed his bank for the mix-up, telling the Indian company: “This entire time my banker has told me that the funds were in your account. He assured me that you had already been paid. I will have it done as quick as I possibly can,” according to the filing. However, there were no records St Mary ever communicated with anyone at his bank regarding payment for the diamonds, the filing said.
“Edward Carlos St. Mary allegedly unlawfully procured hundreds of carats of diamonds worth millions of dollars with fabricated documents and promises of payment that were never upheld,” said FBI assistant director in charge Christopher Raia. “The defendant allegedly disrupted the operations of an international company and utilized [the New York diamond district] to do so.”
The diamonds are still not paid for after nearly four years, the filing noted. St. Mary has been charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. No court date has been set.
Image: Loose diamonds. (Shutterstock)
