Huge yellow diamond goes for $2.8M

CLEVELAND, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- The winning bid for a 43.51-carat yellow diamond seized by the U.S. government was $2,843,623 when an online auction ended Thursday afternoon.

Bid4Assets.com said 16 bids were submitted between Tuesday morning when the auction opened and the closing at 3 p.m. Thursday. The minimum was $900,000.

The "Golden Eye Diamond," a rectangle just over an inch long, is the largest precious stone to be forfeited to the U.S. Marshals Service, The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reported.

The diamond was seized from Paul Monea of Alliance, Ohio, who was convicted of money laundering in 2007 after an investigation into alleged money laundering by car dealers in Stark County, Ohio. Investigators said he offered to sell the diamond to an agent posing as a representative of a South American drug organization.

The Marshals Service gave reporters a private viewing last week, the Plain Dealer said. Spokeswoman Lisa Black said calls had come in from Russia, China, Israel and Saudi Arabia as well as the United States.

"We expect a high demand for the diamond because of its cut, color and clarity," Black said. "It would make for a very nice pendant, but it's too big for the finger."