Shooting at Punjabi-Hindi radio station in Canada’s Surrey; targeted drive-by style attack, say cops

Surrey Police Service (SPS) confirmed it was a targeted drive-by style attack and handed the probe to British Columbia’s newly formed Provincial Extortion Task Force.

Swift 1200 AM, rebranded in July from Spice Radio under local ownership led by Devinder Singh Benipal, Nimmi Daula, Jinny Sims and Sameer Kaushal, is a prominent platform for news, music, talk shows and cultural programming. Its recent shows had focused on extortion threats against Indian-owned businesses and Ottawa’s decision to designate the Lawrence Bishnoi gang as a terrorist organisation.

Former B.C. MLA and current Swift host Jinny Sims said she suspected retaliation. “I think it is linked to the extortion incidents in Surrey in recent months,” Sims told Global News, stressing the station’s role in amplifying victims’ voices.

SPS Staff Sgt. Lindsey Houghton, speaking at the taped-off scene on Tuesday, said the task force was confident of making arrests. “Investigative successes will come—we will make arrests, and police will hold people accountable for these incidents,” he said in a video update posted by community reporter Sarbraj Singh Kahlon.

The extortion task force, launched on September 17, has already logged dozens of cases. Between November 2023 and late September 2025, Surrey recorded 48 complaints, 29 of them involving gunfire. Abbotsford has seen 38 cases, while Brampton and Edmonton have also reported spikes, often involving threats of arson or shootings unless “protection” money was paid.

Police sources point to transnational links, with several cases allegedly tied to the Bishnoi gang. Associates of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, accused of running cross-border extortion rackets, have been implicated in shootings, arsons and murders. While suspects have been arrested in Alberta and Ontario, B.C. police have yet to make major arrests. SPS Chief Constable Norm Lipinski recently said: “We have executed a number of search warrants… We have persons of interest, we are getting closer, but we need that little bit more information.”

The shooting sparked outrage among community leaders. Langley-Abbotsford MLA Harman Bhangu called it proof of “criminals emboldened” by government inaction. “If this was an attack for covering the truth, it is insane that extortionists feel they can roam around shooting up radio stations,” he wrote on X.

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke, who announced a $250,000 reward fund for information leading to convictions last month, reiterated her commitment to tackling the crisis.