US authorities have announced the indictment of Lawrence Bishnoi, the imprisoned leader of an Indian criminal gang, and his top lieutenant in North America, for their alleged role in the 2023 assassination of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. This case triggered a major diplomatic crisis between Canada and India.
According to a federal indictment unveiled in Los Angeles, Lawrence Bishnoi and Satinderjeet Singh, also known as "Goldy Brar," are accused of ordering the assassination of Nijjar, who was shot dead on June 18, 2023, outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada.
US prosecutors allege that Lawrence Bishnoi directed the operation from his prison cell in India using smuggled phones. He reportedly provided an accomplice with a photograph of the victim and several addresses to plan the attack. Meanwhile, Satinderjeet Singh allegedly oversaw the North American activities of the criminal organization known as the "Lawrence Bishnoi Organized Crime Group."
The assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar had deeply damaged relations between Ottawa and New Delhi. A few months after the event, the former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had stated that Canadian authorities were investigating "credible allegations" linking Indian government agents to the murder.
The Indian government has consistently rejected these accusations, calling them "absurd." The new charges brought by the United States come as American and Canadian authorities strengthen their cooperation against transnational criminal networks and continue their investigations into this case, which has significant diplomatic repercussions.
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