Murder plot allegedly targeted Sikh leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun (pictured) Photo: AP/Craig Ruttle
Indian Government official US authorities say they ordered the $100,000 murder of a Sikh activist in the US.
The US government has accused an Indian of plotting to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun and accused a New Delhi government employee of helping plan the killing. attack.
The charge of targeted killings on US soil is a serious diplomatic violation and comes after Canada also accused India of killings on its soil.
The White House said it had discussed the plot with the Indian government, which responded with “surprise and concern.”
The Department of Justice (DOJ) last night unsealed murder-for-hire charges against 52-year-old Nikhil Gupta “in connection with his participation in a foiled plot to murder an American citizen” in New York.
But Manhattan federal prosecutors said an unidentified Indian government employee with law enforcement experience recruited Gupta to kill “an outspoken critic of the Indian government” who “leads a US-based organization advocating Punjab secession.” /p>
The indictment says both the Indian government official and Mr. Gupta instructed the would-be killer that the killing should not occur during Narendra Modi's visit to Washington in June.
Arrest in the Czech Republic
Mr. Gupta, who lives in India, was arrested by Czech authorities under a US extradition order.
The Indian civil servant worked as an “intelligence” officer and called himself a “senior field officer”. , according to charges filed by the Justice Department.
The indictment says the officer contacted Mr. Gupta on May 6, asking him to keep their number as an alias and identifying a “target” in New York.
“The telephone number used by [the government employee] has an Indian country code and is linked to an email account that, according to internet protocol data, was exposed to the Internet on multiple occasions during the period of the murder plot from the outskirts of New Delhi. “, the report said.
In their later conversations, Mr. Gupta allegedly agreed to arrange for the target to be killed after receiving assurances that he would not be charged in the Gujarat case.
Contacting an American undercover agent believing him to be a criminal, Mr Gupta then suggested that the victim might have been lured to his death by someone claiming to be seeking legal advice.
He allegedly offered a payment of $100,000. to an undercover officer after discussing the price with an Indian government official, telling him: “Finish him, brother, finish him, don't take too much time.”
The charges against Mr. Gupta include a photo of him allegedly giving a $15,000 advance to an undercover agent. Photo: Reuters
The charges against Mr. Gupta include a photo of him giving a $15,000 advance to an undercover agent.< /p>Canada's charge
A similar incident in Canada in June led to the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian Sikh separatist. New Delhi said claims that the Indian government was involved in his death were “absurd.”
The Justice Department said that after Nijjar's killing, Mr. Gupta told secret American officials that “there is no need to wait now.” about the murder of a target in New York.
An Indian government official said Wednesday that the United States has “shared some intelligence regarding links between organized crime, arms dealers, terrorists and others.”
He added that India had made it clear that it “takes such proposals seriously as they affect our national security interests” and a “high-level inquiry committee” had been set up on November 18 “to look into all relevant aspects of the matter.” .
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