Serabi Gold sacks senior officers in financial probe

The Palito mining complex consists of two mines: Palito (pictured here) and Sao Chico. (Image courtesy of Serabi Gold.)

Dual-listed Serabi Gold (LON: SRB) (TSX: SBI) said on Tuesday it was terminating two of its Brazil-based senior managers, after finding unexplained cash withdrawals amounting to $200,000.

The gold miner and developer in April flagged $80,000 of unsupported cash withdrawals from its bank account, which triggered a financial probe.

The cash drain stretches back six years, which means the accountants investigating the issue will have their work cut out to allow the company to publish financial results ahead of the set date — June 30.

The Brazil-focused gold miner has found unexplained cash withdrawals over the past six years totalling $200,000

The news comes as Serabi announced results of recent exploration drilling at its Palito gold mine, located in the Tapajos region of the State of Para in Brazil.

Drilling on the Mogno and Ipe veins has confirmed depth extensions over 100 metres below the lowest mined level at Palito.

The Tapajos region is reported to be the world’s third-largest alluvial goldfield and Serabi Gold has focused efforts on the area, which it believes it to be a “major, under-explored” mineral province. 

Historical data show that artisanal miners, called “garimpeiros,” have mined about 30 million ounces of gold, mostly from alluvial and surface weathered bedrock deposits in the region since the 1970s.