Drugs racket between Mexico and North America busted in Canada, 3 Indians held

Three Indian men were among 10 people arrested by the Canadian authorities this week for allegedly being involved in drug trafficking between Mexico and the North American nations, according to local media reports. 

These three Indian-origin men are identified as Ayush Sharma (25), Guramrit Sidhu (60), and Shubham Kumar (29) who are from Brampton and Calgary respectively. 

They were arrested under an international arrest warrant following a joint operation between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), cp24.com (a Canada-based television channel) reported. 

Addressing a news conference in Los Angeles, US attorney Martin Estrada said, “This conspiracy spanned three countries and involved drug suppliers connected to cartels in Mexico, drug distributors and brokers in Los Angeles, Canadian truck drivers, and a network that exported drugs into Canada and even an associate of the Italian Mafia in Montreal.”

The office, as quoted by the report, said that a total of 10 people were arrested, including five from Quebec, Ontario, and Alberta. They would be extradited to the US from Canada. 

Police said Scoppa is alleged to have bought massive quantities of cocaine and other drugs on a wholesale basis and they used Canadian “handlers” and “dispatchers” who would travel to Los Angeles for short periods. 

The “handlers” would coordinate the pickup and delivery of the shipments of cocaine and methamphetamine using Canada-bound trucks, PTI reported, citing the local media report. 

Authorities said the transportation was coordinated by a network of drivers working with dozens of trucking companies who made numerous border crossings from the United States to Canada via the Detroit Windsor Tunnel, the Buffalo Peace Bridge, and the Blue Water Bridge. 

They added that Sharma and Kumar are truck drivers. 

(With PTI inputs)