What indictment claims: Multiple targets on list, multiple persons involved

In the indictment filed in court, there are indications that there was another target that the Indian official wanted neutralised in California.

The indictment alleged that the plot was hatched in May when the Indian official hired Gupta, a narcotics and weapons dealer facing a criminal case in Gujarat, for the job.

Gupta in turn got in touch with a “criminal associate” in the US who actually turned out to be a US federal agency source identified as “CS”. The CS put Gupta in touch with a “hitman” who was a US undercover agent, and is referred to as UC in the indictment.

“During Gupta’s communications with the CS and the UC, Gupta repeatedly emphasized that his co-conspirators directing the assassination plot from India had extensive resources and were closely monitoring the progress of the plotting,” the indictment stated.

Detailing a video call between the supposed assassin and Gupta, it said, “…on or about June 12, 2023, the UC received a video call from Gupta, who appeared to be in a conference room. During the call, Gupta turned the camera toward approximately three other men in the room who were dressed in business attire, sitting around a conference table with Gupta. As Gupta turned the camera back toward himself, he told the UC, ‘we are all counting on you’.”

Following Nijjar’s killing in Canada on June 18, the Indian official, referred to as CC-1 in the indictment, shared a video of Nijjar’s body in a car with Gupta which the latter promptly shared with CS and UC. On June 19, Gupta told UC that Nijjar was one of the targets, at number four or three, but “not to worry (because) we have so many targets, we have so many targets.”

On June 20, the Indian official sent Gupta a news article about Pannun and messaged him, “It’s priority now”. Gupta then directed CS to “find the opportunity” to kill Pannun and to “do it quickly”. The indictment said Gupta stated that before the “29th (of June) we have to finish four jobs” which included Pannun and “three in Canada”.

According to the indictment, Gupta had informed the CS and the UC that after the murder of Pannun, his “confederates” would provide the CS and the UC with additional victims to kill.

On June 9, 2023, “Gupta told the CS during a call that the murder of the Victim (Pannun) would change the UC’s life because ‘we will give more bigger job more, more job every month, every month 2-3 job’.”

Just before Nijjar’s killing, there were exchanges between Gupta and his associates which suggested he was aware of the impending murder of Nijjar.

According to the indictment, on June 12, Gupta told CS that there was a “big target” in Canada. On June 14, Gupta messaged the CS that “we will be needing one good team in Canada also, [t]omorrow I will share you the details”. The following day, Gupta advised the CS that he was still “waiting (for) the details” about the Canadian target.

On June 16, on another call with the CS, Gupta told him that “we are doing their job, brother. We are doing their New York (and) Canada job”.

Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had stated in his country’s Parliament in September that Canadian security agencies had been “actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the Government of India and the killing of a Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar” – a charge rejected by India as “absurd” and “motivated”.

Following Nijjar’s killing, Gupta allegedly warned the supposed assassins to exercise caution as Pannun would be on alert now.

“…we got the go-ahead to go anytime, even today, tomorrow- as early as possible. (The UC) has to finish this job, brother …If he is not alone, (if) there are two guys with him in the meeting or something …put everyone down, put everyone down,” the indictment quoted Gupta as telling CS.

On June 22, the Indian official messaged Gupta that Pannun was not home and that he had “got the message from boss”. The official then told CS to tell the assassins to verify Pannun’s presence at home and if confirmed “it will be a go ahead from us.”

The indictment said that the Indian official had got in touch with Gupta on May 6 for the job and promised to “take care of” a criminal case against him in Gujarat in return. On May 12, he even informed Gupta that the case had been taken care of.

According to the indictment, the official and Gupta largely had conversations in English with some Spanish terms thrown in. They chatted and made calls over encrypted applications. The Indian official had even sent Gupta a GPS application for sending geo-tagged images of the “target’s” location and whereabouts.

Shortly after contacting Gupta, the official had messaged that he had a “target in New York” and another target in “California.” However, no further details of the California target have been provided in the indictment.

“The telephone number used by CC-1 (the Indian official) has an India country code and is registered to an email account that, based on Internet Protocol data, accessed the Internet during the period of the murder plot on numerous occasions from the vicinity of New Delhi, where CC-1 worked during the relevant time period for an Indian government agency,” the indictment said.

After CS demanded details of payments, the Indian official said he was ready to pay USD 150,000 and “the offer will go higher depending upon the quality of the work … and if it’s done as soon as possible”, the indictment said.

The CS demanded USD 100,000 to which the Indian official agreed. Gupta then kept pushing CS to finish the job quickly. On June 4, Gupta promised the CS that “if this job is done successfully” then he would “bring the chief” to meet the CS.

According to the indictment, the advance for the murder was set by the supposed assassins at USD 25,000. On June 5, Gupta asked CC-1 to “check with (his) NY dealer if he can arrange the 25k (payment) there.”

On June 9, a payment of USD 15,000 was finally arranged by an associate of the Indian official. The associate met the supposed assassin in the latter’s car and handed over the cash. A photograph of the cash handover has been attached with the indictment.