FBI raid targets India crime networks with California ties. Here's what to know
An FBI operation dubbed “Operation Hard Ball” led to 24 arrests across California, Canada and Spain in a coordinated strike against organized crime rooted in India. The sweep put a spotlight on allegations of transnational repression that Sikh communities have said is a major problem and needs more attention.
FULL STORY: FBI targets India crime mob California connections. ‘What the real thing looks like’
Here are key takeaways:
- Federal prosecutors charged 37 defendants and arrested 24 people, including 11 in California and one in Sacramento. Agents executed more than 50 search warrants, seizing roughly 1,000 kilograms of cocaine, a dozen firearms and $40,000 in cash.
- Prosecutors linked jailed gang boss Lawrence Bishnoi’s network to the 2023 assassination of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada — the first time U.S. authorities have made that allegation publicly. Canada had previously said India’s government ordered the killing. The Bishnoi allegation shows how India’s intelligence may have used ties with gangsters who reside in Indian prisons but continue to wield enormous power.
- Indictments describe bosses Bishnoi and Jaggu Bhagwanpuria orchestrating murder, extortion and drug-trafficking from Indian prison cells using contraband cellphones and encrypted apps to order killings and shake down shopkeepers abroad.
- Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains, D-Delano, thanked the FBI but criticized Gov. Gavin Newsom for vetoing SB 509, which would have trained law enforcement to recognize transnational repression. The bill unanimously passed the assembly in 2025.
- Dan Stanton, a former Canadian intelligence officer and expert in transnational repression, said state actors including Iran and India have funded organized crime for political aims. He noted Canada designated the Bishnoi group a terrorist entity in September 2025.
- A Madera restaurant owner described being shot at, receiving extortion demands of half a million dollars from callers claiming Bishnoi gang ties, and having his uncle in India shot 10 days after the first attack.
This story was originally published July 11, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "FBI raid targets India crime networks with California ties. Here's what to know."