Punjab Police arrests inspector linked to U.S. indictment allegations in extortion case

Punjab Police has arrested an Inspector days after shifting him to Police Lines following allegations linking him to a U.S. federal indictment in an alleged extortion conspiracy involving an India-based organised crime syndicate, officials said.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Jalandhar Range, Naveen Singla, on Saturday (July 18, 2026), confirmed the arrest of Inspector Gurinderjit Singh Nagra.

Mr. Nagra, who was posted as Station House Officer of Tanda Police Station in Hoshiarpur district, was shifted to Police Lines on July 8 after the State took cognisance of media reports and social media posts linking him to allegations mentioned in a U.S. federal indictment.

The police had also ordered a fact-finding inquiry into the matter, entrusting it to the Superintendent of Police (Investigation), Jalandhar Rural.

The action followed the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California announcing a coordinated international crackdown, code-named ‘Operation Hard Ball’, against India-based transnational organised crime groups, leading to arrests in the U.S., Canada and Europe.

The federal indictment, unsealed in Los Angeles on July 7, alleged that gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria operated the criminal syndicate from an Indian jail and that Mr. Nagra, described as a Punjab Police officer, attempted to implicate a U.S.-based family in a false murder case in India.

According to the indictment, the victims were allegedly coerced into paying $4,00,000 as part of an extortion scheme that involved using false criminal cases in India.

The police had earlier said the inquiry officer was directed to examine the allegations and submit a detailed report, following which further action would be taken in accordance with the law.

The U.S. indictment also named gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is lodged in an Indian jail, and his aide Satinderjeet Singh alias Goldy Brar for allegedly ordering the assassination of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.

Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, was shot dead outside a gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, on June 18, 2023.

According to a federal indictment, Bishnoi ordered the killing of 45-year-old Nijjar, referred to as ‘HSN’ in court documents.

Under ‘Operation Hard Ball’, law enforcement agencies in the U.S., Canada and Europe arrested 24 people, including 11 in California, in connection with three India-based transnational organised crime groups accused of various criminal acts, including Nijjar's assassination.