"Silver Coin Dealer Faces $146M Penalty as Half a Million Coins Disappear"

Precious metals dealer Robert Higgins has been ordered to pay $146 million in damages after over half a million silver coins, worth almost $115 million, went missing from his companies, Argent Asset Group LLC and First State Depository Company LLC. Higgins ran a fraudulent scheme, convincing nearly 200 investors to buy and store American Eagle Silver coins that may not have existed. He distributed false account statements and has been banned from the industry for life. This case adds to a series of scams in the precious metals industry.