The Lawrence Bishnoi-led organised crime syndicate identified extortion targets, including prominent cultural, political and business leaders in India and diaspora communities across the globe, through government database, social media platforms and in-person surveillance.According to the US Department of Justice’s indictment of the jailed gangster, Bishnoi’s associates and gang members gathered information on the pattern of life of the targets and their family members living in India. The syndicate contacted extortion targets through encrypted applications. In these communications, the gang members threatened to harm or eliminate the victims or their families.In this context, the US court documents suggest that gangster Goldy Brar and the Bishnoi syndicate claimed responsibility, through an interview with a media outlet and also a Facebook post, for “ordering and directing the murder of ‘SSS’, a prominent singer and rapper who was murdered on May 29, 2022, in Punjab’s Mansa”. It was a clear reference to the murder of Sidhu Moosewala. Though the US documents have not expanded the acronym ‘SSS’, Moosewala’s actual name was Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu.The documents further mention that “between 2022 and 2026, Bishnoi on multiple occasions announced his intention to murder ‘SK’, a famous Indian actor and television personality. The acronym ‘SK’ hints at the threats received by Salman Khan.Bishnoi is currently lodged at the high-security Sabarmati jail in Gujarat. Elaborating on the purpose of the Bishnoi enterprise, the US Department of Justice said the gang enriched its members and associates through, among other crimes, murder-for-hire contracts, collection of extortion payments and distribution of controlled substances.