Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers in Nanaimo, B.C., are investigating after more than 1,000 Silver Maple Leaf (SML) bullion coins were stolen from an apartment building’s storage area.
The theft occurred in an apartment building located in the 6000 block of McRobb Avenue on Sept. 27. The main door to the apartment’s storage area was “pried open,” according to police, and the suspects broke into three storage units.
A total of 1,025 one-ounce SML coins valued at $40,000 plus a Ruger Mark III semi-automatic pistol (with the serial number “27445686”) were stolen from one of the units.
Anyone with information about the incident or stolen items is asked to contact the Nanaimo RCMP non-emergency line at 250-754-2345 and quote file number “2020-35576.”
SILVER MAPLE LEAF
Following the success of its Gold Maple Leaf bullion coins introduced in 1979, the Royal Canadian Mint began producing a one-ounce SML coin in September 1988.
The original coin’s obverse bears the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin, the year-date of 1988 and the face value of $5—the highest face value on the market for any comparable silver bullion coin.
The national symbol of Canada – the maple leaf – graces the coin’s reverse. The 1988 run of SML coins had a mintage of 1.11 million pieces.