A Punjab police inspector has emerged as a key figure in an investigation into India-linked organised crime groups by federal agencies in the US, Canada, and Europe, according to US law enforcement officials and court documents unsealed on Tuesday.
Police inspector Gurinderjit Singh Nagra allegedly worked with members of Bhagwanpuria’s gang and tried to extort roughly $400,000 (around ₹3.81 crore) from a family in the US by threatening to frame their relatives in Punjab for murder, US attorney Bill Essayli said at a press briefing.
The announcement was part of Operation Hard Ball, a sweeping crackdown by US and Canadian authorities against criminal networks that stretched from Punjab to California, executing indictments filed in US courts against notorious gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi, Jaggu Bhagwanpuria and Ravinder Singh Dhanda.
So far, 24 have been arrested and 37 charged in the operation.
US prosecutors said they would push for Nagra’s extradition after he is arrested.
“We have charged him, and we will extradite him into the U.S.,” Essayli said of Nagra’s extradition during Tuesday’s press conference.
As news of his involvement became public, Punjab Police took Nagra – who was posted as the station house officer (SHO) at Tanda station in Hoshiarpur – off active duty and moved him to the police lines, and started a fact-finding inquiry.
{{/usCountry}}As news of his involvement became public, Punjab Police took Nagra – who was posted as the station house officer (SHO) at Tanda station in Hoshiarpur – off active duty and moved him to the police lines, and started a fact-finding inquiry.
{{/usCountry}}The charges against Nagra are detailed in a 44-page indictment filed on June 25 that names Bhagwanpuria as the first defendant. The indictment, filed with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, was unveiled by U.S. authorities on July 7.
According to the indictment, in April this year, Gurlal Singh, a 22-year-old illegal immigrant from India living in Stockton, California, and an alleged member of the Bhagwanpuria syndicate, gave Nagra the name and details of a California-based target for an extortion plot built around a murder in Hoshiarpur.
On January 15, 2026, three assailants shot down Balvinder Singh, a local Aam Aadmi Party leader and owner of a hardware shop, in Miani village of Tanda sub-division. He was identified as B.S. in the indictment. A day later, gangsters Jashal Chambal and Gurlal Rudiana claimed responsibility for the murder in a social media post uploaded from Rudiana’s account.
Nagra then allegedly contacted the father of the target on April 13, threatening to frame the entire family, including the target’s sister, for the murder. On April 16, he demanded a payout, threatening to name all three as accused in the case.
In a press conference on May 24, Nagra along with deputy superintendent of police Davinder Singh Bajwa claimed to have arrested two main shooters behind the killing – Gurman Singh and Sawaraj Singh of Panj Garayian village in Gurdaspur.
Both officers claimed the suspects were linked with US-based gangster Gurlal Singh and that Balwinder’s was a contract killing, for which they were paid ₹1.80 lakh.
They said Balwinder’s daughter had a marital dispute with her husband, California-based Gurpreet Singh, who conspired to kill Balwinder. Police also formally named Gurpreet, his father Charanjit Singh, a retired assistant sub-inspector of police, and his sister in the murder case.
The US indictment, however, showed Gurpreet Singh was the target of the extortion plot, along with his father and his sister.
In the same press conference on May 24, members of the California family were accused of ordering a hit on Balwinder.
According to the indictment, Nagra continued pressuring the victims, especially Gurpreet’s sister. Nagra offered to remove the names of two of the three family members from the murder case if he received payment.
Essayli told reporters that Nagra’s final demand stood at $400,000 (approximately ₹3.81 crore).
The US indictment noted that between April 13 and June 5, Nagra tried to acquire property in Los Angeles county.