The US has accused Indian jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his associate Satinderjit Singh alias Goldie Brar of ordering the murder of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in November 2023. According to a federal indictment unsealed in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Bishnoi ordered the killing of Nijjar three years ago on June 18 outside a Sikh gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia.
In court documents, Hardeep Singh Nijjar has been referred to as HSN. In a joint operation called 'Operation Hardball', law enforcement agencies from the US, Canada and Europe arrested 24 people. Of these, 11 people alone were from California. These people were associated with three international organized crime organizations operating from India, and are accused of several criminal activities including the murder of Nijjar.
"Law enforcement agencies in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia are together committed to targeting and dismantling these organized criminal organizations, no matter where they operate. But there is no safe haven for these criminals," First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Asseley said at a press conference in Los Angeles.
Bilateral relations between India and Canada had deteriorated due to the killing of Khalistani separatist Nijjar, as the then Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tried to link the New Delhi government to the killing. Whereas India rejected these claims outright and termed them as “absurd and malicious”.
This action is the result of a several-year federal investigation against the Indian crime syndicate. These syndicates are involved in racketeering, target killing, firing and extortion, smuggling of huge quantities of drugs across international borders and other crimes across the world, which especially impact the Indian community.
The three chargesheets issued on Tuesday alleged that in total, 37 accused, including two accused who despite being lodged in Indian jails, are running their criminal gangs at the global level. Among those arrested in America, apart from 11 people in California, one was arrested in Indiana and one from Georgia. They are expected to be presented in the Federal Court today.
Apart from this, 3 accused were arrested in Canada, one accused was arrested in Spain, while 7 accused are already in custody. Also, the investigating agencies are searching for 10 fugitives, out of which 7 are in America, 2 in India and one in Europe. Kuldeep Bishnoi is already in jail in India, while his partner Goldie Brar is still absconding.
“This joint operation has broken the backs of three dangerous international organizations that have terrorized families, exploited communities, and taken lives through brutal acts of violence in the United States and abroad,” said Patrick Grandy, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Commissioner Mike Duhem said that investigative agencies have worked to break up a network of "organized criminals" who used murder, brutality and fear to extort and control people in Canada and the United States. He added, "We will not take much time to reflect on the hard work that has gone into this work. We will continue to do our best to maintain the safety of people in Canada, the United States and around the world."
