In a major development in the investigation into the 2023 killing of Canadian Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, U.S. authorities on Tuesday announced charges against jailed Indian gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his close associate, Satinderjeet Singh, alias Goldy Brar. According to a federal indictment unsealed on Tuesday, the two allegedly ordered Nijjar’s assassination.
The charges were announced as part of Operation Hard Ball, a years-long international law enforcement operation targeting India-based crime syndicates accused of racketeering, targeted killings, extortion and cross-border drug trafficking.
According to the indictment, Bishnoi and Brar are accused of ordering the June 18, 2023 killing of a prominent political and religious leader identified in court documents only by the initials “H.S.N.”
The indictment says two gunmen shot and killed H.S.N. outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia.
The victim has been widely identified as Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen and prominent Sikh community leader who served as president of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia.
Nijjar was shot dead on June 18, 2023, after leaving the gurdwara sahib.
