COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.—The ringleader of former mining workers accused of stealing $1.7 million in gold and silver from Cripple Creek & Victor Gold Mining Co. is headed to prison, prosecutors said.
Peter Lloyd Quammen, 36, was sentenced Monday in Teller County to six years in prison and five years of parole. He pled guilty in June to theft of $15,000 or more.
Two others in the case were sentenced in March. John William Hurtt, 46, was sentenced to four years in prison and three years of parole. Daniel Blake Parsons, 38, was ordered to serve 90 days in jail and 10 years on probation.
The men were ordered to pay $1.5 million in restitution.
Michael Jon Goss, 37, was awaiting sentencing in October after pleading guilty to theft of $15,000 or more. Brian D. Moores, 41, has pleaded not guilty to theft of $15,000 or more.
Authorities said the men had been taking small amounts of gold and silver from the mining company since at least 1999. Company officials began investigating in 2005 after receiving anonymous tips.
The men were accused of diverting a line carrying gold-saturated fluid from the mine to a homemade recovery filter, sending it to California for refining and then selling it.
Company general manager Ron Largent said he was satisfied with the sentences and called the arrests a shock.
“I knew each and every one of them fairly well, and I knew each of them personally, so that was a big blow to me,” Largent told The Gazette.
