Punjab police officer Gurinderjit Singh Nagra has been shifted to police lines after U.S. prosecutors linked him to an alleged transnational extortion plot involving gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria’s organised crime group.
Nagra, who served as station house officer at Tanda police station in Hoshiarpur, faces scrutiny after U.S. authorities alleged he helped members of Bhagwanpuria’s syndicate falsely implicate victims in a murder case in India to extort money from a Los Angeles family.
Punjab Police Orders Inquiry Against Gurinderjit Singh Nagra
Hoshiarpur Senior Superintendent of Police Sandeep Kumar Malik ordered Nagra’s transfer to police lines as a precautionary measure after a video from an FBI media briefing circulated widely online. Punjab police have also opened an inquiry under a Jalandhar superintendent of police.
Police officials said they have not yet received formal communication from New Delhi or the Punjab government regarding the U.S. allegations. They said further action will depend on the findings of the internal inquiry.
The U.S. Allegations In Operation Hard Ball
The allegations form part of Operation Hard Ball, a major U.S.-led probe into India-based transnational organised crime groups accused of murder-for-hire, extortion, drug trafficking, weapons offences and other crimes across the United States, Canada and Europe. The U.S. Department of Justice said 24 people were arrested and 37 defendants were charged across three indictments.
In the case involving the Bhagwanpuria syndicate, prosecutors allege Gurlal Singh, 22, of Stockton, California, threatened a victim in April 2026 and then gave the victim’s name to a corrupt law enforcement officer in Punjab.
Prosecutors allege the victim, the victim’s father and sister were then falsely accused in connection with a January 2026 murder in India. U.S. authorities identified the officer as Gurinderjit Singh and alleged he extorted the victim and the victim’s father in connection with the pending murder case.
Bhagwanpuria Syndicate Accused Of Global Crime Network
The U.S. Department of Justice described Bhagwanpuria, 38, as an imprisoned gangster in India and a former associate turned rival of Lawrence Bishnoi. Prosecutors allege his group has more than 1,000 members and associates worldwide, including more than 100 in the United States.
U.S. officials allege the group used corrupt officials, false criminal claims and threats against families to fuel extortion schemes. The indictment also accuses members of drug trafficking, firearms dealing and kidnappings.
The broader Operation Hard Ball case also includes allegations tied to the 2023 killing of Canadian citizen and Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, B.C. U.S. prosecutors said all defendants remain presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
