The triangle that connects Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana attracts a huge number of illegal gold and diamonds prospectors who dream of changing their lives overnight by finding a huge bonanza.
It is estimated that diamonds worth $30 million produced in Venezuela annually though officially the country does not export diamonds.
The country has done little to put an end to this illegal trading of diamonds.
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An illegal mine is seen in the southern state of Bolivar near the border with Brazil.
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The wife of an illegal miner flies on a Cessna plane into the mining area in the southern state of Bolivar.
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An illegal miner or garimpeiro rests outside a mine in the southern state of Bolivar.
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A diamond cutter shows a rough stone while working on it in his work place in Santa Elena de Uairen in the south of Venezuela.
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Heavily armed guards hold their weapons outside a business licensed to buy rough diamonds and gold in Georgetown, Venezuela.
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An indigenous man prepares his canoe before departing with barrels of gas to the mining area near the village of Parkupik, south of Venezuela.
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An illegal miner or garimpeiro stands in a mine in the southern state of Bolivar near the border with Brazil.
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An miner named Ramon flashes a gold letter 'R' on his tooth as he smiles after working in a mine in Bolivar.
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An illegal miner or garimpeiro digs with a pressure hose in the southern state of Bolivar.
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A miner's boots dry outside a shack in the jungle in the village of Parkupik in the southern state of Bolivar.
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A safe belonging to a gold and diamonds merchant is seen inside a wooden shack in the indigenous village of Parkupik in the jungle near the border with Brazil in the south of Venezuela.
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A man performs maintenance while sitting on the top of an Antonov An-2 aircraft before it departs with supplies to the mines in the town of Ikabaru in the south of Venezuela.
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A tree stump is seen in an illegal mine in the southern state of Bolivar near the border with Brazil.
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Rough diamonds are seen on the desk of a trader in his office in Santa Elena de Uairen in the south of Venezuela.
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Diamond and gold buyers wait for miners and customers outside a shop in Santa Elena de Uairen, south of Venezuela.
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An illegal mine is seen in the southern state of Bolivar near the border with Brazil.
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A miner pauses to smoke while working near the town of Ikabaru in the south of Venezuela.
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Justin, 21, rides the back of a pickup truck as he comes to spend the season in a mine near the Ikabaru river in the south of Venezuela.
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A diamond cutter inspects a rough stone in his work place in Santa Elena de Uairen in the south of Venezuela.
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Illegal miners search for traces of gold in the bottom of a dish while working in the southern state of Bolivar.
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An illegal miner or garimpeiro works on a mine near the town of Ikabaru, south of Venezuela.
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An illegal miner digs with a pressure hose in the southern state of Bolivar, Venezuela.
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