Federal, local and international authorities have arrested 24 suspected members of transnational organized crime groups, including several believed to be linked to the 2023 murder of a Sikh activist outside a Canadian temple.
As part of “Operation Hardball,” authorities have made arrests in the United States, Canada and Europe, including eight people in Southern California, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles. Three separate federal indictments expose alleged crimes across California, including kidnapping, murder and drug trafficking. Authorities said they had seized approximately 1,000 kilograms of cocaine and 1 kilogram of heroin, along with $40,000 in cash and a dozen firearms.
According to the indictments, thirty-seven people have been charged in the Central District of California.
Among those charged is Lawrence Bishnoi, 33, who allegedly personally directed political assassinations, murders, shootings, extortion, kidnappings, drug trafficking, human trafficking and other crimes from his cell in India.
An image taken from a federal court indictment shows cocaine allegedly linked to Indian organized crime groups that was seized by authorities on September 18, 2023.
(US District Court)
Bishnoi and a childhood friend, Satinderjeet Singh, allegedly ordered the June 2023 murder of a prominent religious and political leader from India's Punjab state who lived in British Columbia. Although authorities identified the victim only by his initials, HSN, media reports identify him as Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
An accomplice of the group allegedly contacted a California resident, identified only by his initials SS, in Fontana, referenced the June 2023 murder and threatened to meet him at his next immigration hearing.
An image taken from a federal court indictment shows cocaine and heroin seized by authorities as part of an investigation into drug trafficking organizations whose leaders are based in India.
(US District Court)
Singh and Rohit Godara, who is also charged, allegedly claimed responsibility in a Facebook post for the December 2024 murder of a man, identified by his initials SY, in Stockton. The online post supposedly warned, in Punjabi, “[a]All our enemies, be prepared, whatever corner of the world you reach, we will get there.”
News outlet CalMatters previously identified the victim as Sunil Yadav, an Indian national and alleged member of the Bishnoi gang.
Another indictment charges Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, a 38-year-old former associate of Bishnoi who allegedly developed his own independent criminal network that grew to rival Bishnoi's gang. Bhagwanpuria allegedly monitored and directed the group's global activities from a cell in India, using contraband cell phones and other voice-over Internet Protocol devices, according to the indictment.
Bhagwanpuria's group allegedly had multiple drug smuggling rings in California, each run by a different regional leader. The drug shipments, typically containing 100 kilograms or more of cocaine or methamphetamine, were allegedly collected in Southern California in passenger vehicles and then transferred to long-haul trucks for transport to the eastern United States or the US-Canada border.
Bhagwanpuria's group, which is said to include more than 100 members and associates in the United States, allegedly “corrupted law enforcement officials in India and conspired with corrupt government officials, including to assist in extortion schemes,” according to the indictment. The group allegedly provided false information to law enforcement officials in India, triggering “baseless criminal proceedings as well as extortion plots by corrupt Indian law enforcement officials against alleged rivals.”
An image taken from a federal court indictment shows a short-barreled semi-automatic ghost rifle and 30 rounds seized in a parking lot in Bakersfield on October 7, 2025.
(US District Court)
Members of the Bhagwanpuria criminal group are accused of kidnapping and assaulting an associate in California who was believed to have stolen a load of drugs.
The indictment against Bhagwanpuria also details members of the organized crime group selling semi-automatic rifles, a machine gun and handguns in parking lots throughout Southern California.
A third indictment charges Ravinder Singh Dhanda, who allegedly operated a cocaine and methamphetamine distribution network that provided international smuggling services to drug traffickers in the United States, Mexico and elsewhere.
Federal, local and international officials are expected to provide more details about the federal charges and arrests at a news conference Tuesday morning.
