The organised crime syndicates of gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi and Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, who were once associates, operated with strikingly similar methods, recruiting unsuspecting minors and women for illicit activities.Bishnoi, currently lodged in Gujarat’s Sabarmati jail, often recruited minors from poor areas of Punjab, exploiting the fact that juveniles faced lighter punishment if caught, according to the US Department of Justice records accessed by The Tribune.The crime records of Jagdeep Singh, alias Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, who is lodged at the Silchar Central Jail in Assam, reveal that his gang used a woman, Mandeep Kaur, alias Cheema, to transport drugs in the US.A 44-page federal indictment unsealed in Los Angeles as part of the FBI’s Operation Hard Ball stated that in certain parts of India, the Bhagwanpuria gang paid as little as Rs 20,000 to members to commit a murder.The charges also mentioned the alleged involvement of corrupt government officials, including Gurinderjit Singh Nagra, the former SHO of the Tanda police station in Hoshiarpur. Nagra has been accused of conspiring with gangsters to extort $4 lakh from a Los Angeles-based family by threatening to frame relatives in Punjab. Nagra has since been shifted to the police lines. Despite attempts, he was not available for comment.The records highlight that Bishnoi’s syndicate recruited minors through promotional social media videos and messages, luring them with promises of money, notoriety and protection. However, upon being recruited, the new members received minimal compensation for crimes committed on behalf of the enterprise, the court records revealed.On the other hand, loyal members were sent abroad on student or worker visas, often obtained fraudulently, to assist in operations in the US and Canada.The documents also provide insight into the daily operations of the Bishnoi syndicate. The gangster delegated control to lieutenants and regional leaders, including childhood friend Satinderjeet Singh, alias Goldy Brar, who directed North American operations, and Rohit Godara, who oversaw Europe.The indictment shows how the members distributed cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin in the US, importing and exporting controlled substances, and even stealing bulk consignments from rival traffickers. The profits were shared among members abroad and sent back to India.In April, Canada’s financial intelligence agency FINTRAC issued a special bulletin warning of gangs coercing financially vulnerable Indian students on study permits into targeted violence. It identified the Bishnoi and rival Bambiha gangs as primary drivers of such violence. The Canadian government officially designated the Bishnoi gang a listed terrorist entity on September 29, 2025.