State prosecutors sue Ketchikan jeweler over sale of fake gold

The storefront of Soni Jewelers successful Ketchikan connected May 23, 2024. (Jack Darrell/KRBD)

A jeweler that operates 2 storefronts successful downtown Ketchikan is being sued by nan authorities for allegedly trading clone gold. 

Attorney General Treg Taylor revenge nan suit connected May 23 against Soni, Inc., which owns Soni Jewelers and Colors Fine Jewelry, arsenic good arsenic an outlet wrong Tongass Trading Company. The 2 stores are successful nan bosom of downtown Ketchikan, straight crossed from nan cruise vessel docks.

The complaint also names nan company’s director, Sunita “Soni” Lakhwani. In consequence to a petition for comment, KRBD was told that Lakhwani was retired of municipality and unavailable. 

Assistant Attorney General Ian Engelbeck said authorities investigators made a bid of undercover purchases from nan storefronts, which waste Alaska-themed jewelry during nan cruise vessel season.

“In mid-September, our undercover interrogator made a purchase, (which) was represented to her arsenic a golden quartz ringing pinch golden quartz mined successful Alaska,” Engelbeck said. “We wished that we believed it was imitation, and we applied to nan superior tribunal successful Ketchikan for an impound order.” 

They received that impound order, which allowed authorities to confiscate 10 pieces of jewelry from each store. The authorities said they tested them successful a laboratory and recovered them to beryllium man-made “gold nuggets” and “gold quartz” from out-of-state suppliers.

According to the complaint, Soni, Inc. was passing this imported clone golden disconnected arsenic earthy stones and nuggets mined successful bluish Alaska and handmade into jewelry by mostly Ketchikan-based jewelers. Salespeople besides allegedly told nan undercover investigators that earthy golden quartz only occurs successful Alaska and tin only beryllium legally purchased successful Alaska, which is false.

“In addition, Soni Inc.’s salespeople constituent customers to elements of Soni Inc.’s jewelry that look to beryllium golden nuggets and proclaim that these are 24 karat Alaska golden nuggets,” prosecutors said successful nan complaint. “In fact, laboratory testing and nan inventory power tags connected galore of these ‘nuggets,’ including ones that undercover investigators were told were 24 karat Alaska golden nuggets, show that they are really imitations made of 14 karat golden shaped to lucifer a earthy nugget.”

One of nan group successful nan shop allegedly making mendacious claims to undercover investigators was Lakhwani herself. The title said that erstwhile questioned by investigators, Lakhwani admitted that she wasn’t judge wherever nan jewelry was made but did cognize that nan stones weren’t from Alaska, arsenic advertised. One Soni Jewelry worker allegedly told investigators, “(E)verybody thinks that’s from Alaska. So if nan customer asks ‘it’s from Alaska?’ I’ll astir apt opportunity ‘yes’ . . . But nan portion comes from L.A.”

“These cases are important because it evidently hurts visitors who deliberation they’re buying a genuine article,” Engelbeck said. “It besides hurts businesses and Alaskan communities that are trying to do correct and waste nan existent point and it hurts Alaskan artisans who make nan authentic point and having imitation equipment sold arsenic existent squeezes nan existent point retired of nan market.”

State prosecutors asked nan Ketchikan Superior Court to participate a impermanent restraining bid to forestall Soni, Inc. from continuing to waste fraudulent and misrepresented products. As of Tuesday afternoon, nan storefronts downtown were still unfastened and operating for nan tourer season.