(IDEX Online) – An Alaska-based jewelry business, Soni Inc., is facing allegations of selling fake gold nuggets to undercover investigators, according to the state’s attorney general.
Investigators, posing as customers, were told by salespeople at Soni Inc. that the gold nuggets were exceptionally pure 24 karat gold. However, laboratory tests revealed that the nuggets were actually 14 karat imitations crafted to resemble natural gold nuggets, the state’s law department stated in its complaint.
Soni Inc., which operates under the names Soni Jewelry and Colors Fine Jewelry in Ketchikan, was also found to be selling “gold quartz” with veins of gold that were either low-purity alloys of roughly half gold or contained no gold at all. The company falsely claimed that natural gold quartz only occurs in Alaska and can only be legally purchased there.
“Misrepresenting imitation goods originating from outside as authentic and locally made souvenirs to people who just want a genuine keepsake from their trip to Alaska is intolerable,” said Attorney General Treg Taylor. “It hurts trusting tourists, and it hurts Alaskan communities.”
The State of Alaska has requested the Superior Court to issue a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction to prevent Soni Inc. from continuing to misrepresent its imitation jewelry.
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