2003

GIA Takes Action Against Counterfeit Reports

June 2003

Recent legal actions taken by Gemological Institute of America (GIA) have stopped the issuing of counterfeit reports.

The GIA filed a lawsuit in Chicago against Moti Weisbrot and others, alleging counterfeiting. The GIA also took action against those who produced the counterfeit reports or agreed to sell diamonds accompanied by the counterfeit reports. GIA also filed a criminal prosecution against Weisbrot in Italy.

To GIA’s knowledge, only a small amount of reports were used in the scheme. All the reports sold with the counterfeit reports were clarity enhanced. The GIA’s Gem Trade Lab does not grade stones that are clarity enhanced, which means not only were the documents counterfeit, they were connected to diamonds that GIA would not give a report to in the first place.

The Diamond Registry recommends that if you are ever unsure about the authenticity of a GIA report, you should double-check the numbers on it with a Sarin computer report (as we do at the Diamond Dealers Club) and inspect the hologram that is on every report. If you are really unsure, you can call the GIA, which has a registry of all larger certified stones. And of course, if a report is for a clarity-enhanced stone, then it is obviously a fake.