2002

1,000-Carat Diamond Disappears After Being Discovered in Sierra Leone

June 2002

The government of Sierra Leone suspects a huge diamond has been smuggled out of the country’s boarders en route to Belgium and on to Israel.

The stone, reportedly weighing about 1,000 carats and registering as the second-largest gem ever discovered, was said to have been found in April.

While speculation abounds, there has been no sign of the stone in either Belgium or Israel.

The world’s largest diamond remains the 3,107-carat Cullinan diamond discovered in South Africa in 1905.