Law enforcement agencies in the United States, Canada and Europe have arrested 24 people in a major coordinated crackdown on India-linked transnational organised crime groups accused of killings, extortion, drug trafficking and other serious offences, including the 2023 assassination of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.
The US Justice Department said the operation, named "Operation Hard Ball", was the result of a years-long federal investigation into three India-based criminal syndicates whose activities allegedly stretched across North America, Europe and Asia. In all, 37 defendants have been charged across three indictments unsealed in the US.
Of the 24 arrested, 11 were taken into custody in California, while one arrest each was made in Indiana and Georgia. Three defendants were arrested in Canada and one in Spain. Seven others were already in custody before the operation, while authorities are still searching for 10 fugitives out of which seven in the US, two in India and one in Europe.
The investigation led to the seizure of around 1,000 kg of cocaine, 1 kg of heroin, $40,000 in cash and a dozen firearms. Authorities also executed 23 search warrants in the Sacramento area and 11 in the Los Angeles area.
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One of the indictments names jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, 33, of Punjab, India, as the alleged head of a global criminal enterprise. Prosecutors said Bishnoi used smuggled mobile phones and internet-based communication devices from prison to direct assassinations, shootings, extortion, kidnappings, drug trafficking and human smuggling.
The indictment alleges that Bishnoi and Satinderjeet Singh, also known as Goldy Brar, ordered the killing of Nijjar, who was shot dead outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18, 2023. Court documents identify the victim by the initials "H.S.N.".
Prosecutors said the Bishnoi network used high-profile violence to create fear among Indian diaspora communities and then exploited that fear for extortion. The gang also allegedly used WhatsApp and other encrypted messaging platforms to threaten victims in the US and elsewhere.
Two other indictments target groups allegedly led by Jaggu Bhagwanpuria and Ravinder Singh Dhanda. These networks are accused of murder-for-hire plots, drug trafficking, firearms offences and large-scale smuggling of cocaine and methamphetamine from the US into Canada.
Authorities stressed that the charges are only allegations and that all defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. If convicted, many could face prison terms ranging from mandatory minimum sentences of 10 years to life imprisonment.
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