… The growing demand for gold as a conductive metal used in phones and other electronic products has helped spawn a deadly illegal trade that’s harder to track than other black-market commodities like blood diamonds or drugs… “The Weekly” travels to Colombia, where violent paramilitary groups have infiltrated every level of the supply chain, extorting prospectors, gold traders and some of the country’s top mining officials… Nicholas Casey traces gold tainted by criminal enterprises to see who profits, and who looks the other way. He discovers a route from illegal Colombian mines to the source that Apple and other major companies use to buy metals to make phones and other products many of us carry in our pockets every day…In Apple’s most recent report on the materials it uses, the company says it “commits to use minerals in its products that do not directly or indirectly finance armed conflict or benefit armed groups.” In Colombia, we found evidence that Apple and other companies may get gold from suppliers that help finance armed groups. Apple also says it audits all of its 101 gold suppliers. But our reporting found those audits did not give a full picture of the supply chain…Illegal gold is melted down and mixed with other gold at various points in the supply chain, masking its criminal origins…Gold is a profitable way for armed groups and international gold traders brokering illegal gold to launder money…