U.S. prosecutors have charged several Indian gang members with orchestrating the assassination of a well-known Sikh activist in Vancouver in 2023. This murder has triggered a significant diplomatic rift between India and Canada.
This development comes after a lengthy investigation by U.S. and international law enforcement into organized crime groups linked to India. On Tuesday, authorities announced three indictments and brought charges against 37 individuals.
One of the alleged leaders of these criminal groups is Lawrence Bishnoi. U.S. officials claim he managed a drug trafficking and extortion operation worth millions, all while being incarcerated in India. Bishnoi is specifically accused in the indictments of ordering the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a British Columbia activist advocating for an independent Sikh state in India.
