Canada Arrests 23 Punjabi Origin Indo-Canadians For Transnational Drug Trafficking Activities

Canadian law enforcement agencies have arrested and charged over two dozen persons, mostly Indo-Canadians with roots in Punjab, involved in transnational drug trafficking activities according to a report published in Times of India.

The arrests in Greater Toronto Area came after a year-long investigation. A total of 30 arrests have been made since 8 April. Twenty-three are of Punjabi origin.

The agencies undertaking investigations were Canada’s York Regional Police, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Peel regional police and the US Drug Enforcement.

The investigation, named Project Cheetah, began in May last year and penetrated “a robust network” involved in importing large quantities of banned drugs into Canada. “The drugs were then distributed across the country through a sophisticated system run by the traffickers,” YRP said.

The drug trafficking network extended to the US and India, and drugs were brought into Canada from California and India.

Six of the Indian origin people arrested, including a woman, are in their twenties and the eldest suspect is 60 years old.

They have been charged with heroin possession, trafficking of cocaine, conspiracy to traffic cocaine.

$2.3 million worth of drugs, including ten kg of cocaine, eight kg of ketamine, three kg of heroin and 2.5kg of opium, were confiscated.

Agencies also seized 48 firearms and $730,000 in Canadian currency, which was direct proceeds of the trafficking.