Alto Group Holdings Inc fka ALTO

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(Where did that gold nugget go??)IAMGOLD partnered with a small company... and oooops! Where did the golden samples go?

I bet there was so much gold in the samples...
oooooops, hay! What samples...

That is funny, but once ALTO gets the permits, alto could also partner with a larger company.

http://www.stockhouse.com/Community-News/2010/Oct/18/IAMGOLD-launches-Mali-probe-after-samples-go-missi

IAMGOLD launches Mali probe after samples go missing

Assay laboratory closed after preparation protocols not followed, company says.

IAMGOLD Corp. (TSX: T.IMG, Stock Forum) says an investigation has been launched following the discovery that sample preparation protocols have not been consistently followed at an assaying laboratory in Mali, West Africa.

A preliminary investigation indicates that some sample material that was extracted from the Kalana property in southwestern Mali where IAMGOLD and partner Avnel Gold Mining Ltd. (TSX: T.AVK, Stock Forum) are engaged in exploration has been lost during the preparation phase.

Drill samples were also found discarded on the project site, Avnel said in a press release issued on Monday.

As a result, the SGS laboratory at Kalana has been closed temporarily.

“Some of the samples went missing from the stream of samples that go into the assay lab,’’ IAMGOLD senior vice-president of exploration Mike Donnelly told reporters on Monday. “That casts doubt on the integrity of the data base,’’ he said.

As a result, the samples must be re-assayed to restore the integrity of the data base, so that the joint venture partners can be sure that all the information that they have is accurate.

“It seems that the lab wasn’t following the proper protocol,’’ Donnelly said. “Because of that, we ended up with some faulty data.’’

Still, Donnelly said Iamgold remains confident in the project where drilling continues after a second drill was mobilized last week. “We still feel very strongly about the project.” he said. "It's a good project."

“What we need to do, is do the re-assaying work and restore the technical integrity of those assays, so that we know with some accuracy and precision exactly how much gold there is,’’ Donnelly added.

IAMGOLD shares fell 0.39% to $17.86 on Monday, while Avnel eased 1.79% to 27.5 cents.

News of the missing samples comes after IAMGOLD entered an option deal in August 2009 to acquire up to a 51% stake in Avnel’s 80 per cent interest in the Kalana project.

To exercise the option, IAMGOLD is required to spend $11 million on exploration over a three-year period and outline two million ounces of gold resources under the specifications of National Instrument 43-101, and launch a feasibility study.

The Kalana project is located in southwest Mali and consists of an operating underground mine and an exploration property covering 390 square kilometers. The Malian government holds a 20% per cent stake in the project.

When IAMGOLD signed the option deal last year, the focus of exploration was expected to be satellite zones that occur outside an area of shallow dipping quartz veins that have been the target of mining activity for many years.