Elemetal

Elemetal is a Dallas, Texas-based corporation with many subsidiaries which smelt, refine and trade gold.

Walter Luhrman founded a precious metals refinery in Jackson, Ohio under the name Jackson Precious Metals in 1974. It would run into financial difficulties in the 1990s and he would sell it to Alan Stockmeister, a Jackson native who owned many local area businesses, including the local newspaper. Stockmeister would rename the precious metals refinery, Ohio Precious Metals.

In April 2012, while encountering financial difficulties, Ohio Precious Metals LLC ("OPM") merged with Dallas based NTR Metals. John Loftus and Steve Loftus, the owners of NTR Metals, changed the name to Elemetal.

In March 2017, Juan P. Granda a former employee of NTR Metals, Miami was charged with buying gold from illegal mines in Peru.[1] In January 2018; Samer H. Barrage, Renato J. Rodriguez, and Juan P. Granda; three former employees of the now-defunct Florida-based NTR Metals Miami, were jailed for six years after they pleaded guilty to money-laundering. Elemetal was not charged in the case against the three rogue gold traders.[2]

In March 2018, Elemetal pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Florida to "failure to maintain an adequate anti-money laundering program", a violation of the Bank Secrecy Act.[3] Elemetal was fined $15 million.[4]

In April 2019, Republic Metals Corporation "executed a non-prosecution agreement" with the USDA in the ongoing Operation Arch Stanton[5] investigation which had ensnared the three former employees of the now-defunct NTR Metals Miami.[6]