Investigators did not find any evidence linking the Indian government officials to the US probe that charged gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and dozens of other members of three organised crime groups, a senior Canadian law enforcement official said.
The clarification came as authorities in the US unsealed three federal indictments charging 37 defendants linked to transnational criminal organisations, IANS reported.
The offence include racketeering, murder, extortion, kidnappings and drug trafficking. This comes after years-long multinational investigation spanning the US, Canada and Europe.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Deputy Commissioner Lisa Moreland’s statement came when she was asked whether the probe uncovered evidence supporting allegations made by former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that agents of the Indian government were connected to the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia, in June 2023.
“There’s current people in Canada that are facing charges on that, so I can’t comment in relation to that investigation,” Moreland said while referring to the separate Canadian criminal case.
She later went on to draw distinction between that investigation and the indictments announced on Tuesday.
“In relation to this matter today, as stated in the press conference, there’s no evidence to suggest that through this organised crime investigation and the charges and the indictment laid forward, that Indian officials were charged or were involved in this investigation,” IANS quoted her as saying.
On being questioned whether anything contained in the newly unsealed indictments supported allegations against the Indian government, Moreland said: “No.”
“What I would add… is that as with any good arrest, there’s over 50 search warrants that were conducted today, so various intelligence and evidence will be collected through there, and devices and the investigation is ongoing. But I firmly state… that nothing has come out today to link the Indian government,” she added.