On Friday, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in India searched the home of Simran Preet Panesar in Mohali. He is a major suspect in Canada’s biggest gold theft, which happened last year. This raid comes just two days after the ED opened a money laundering investigation linked to the crime that took place outside India.
An ED official said, “Our team is looking into Panesar’s home as part of our investigation. He will also be questioned.”
A report revealed that the ED started this investigation following a section of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. This law allows them to handle cases that cross international borders, like crimes committed by Indians in other countries.
The agency filed a report about a theft worth 22.5 million Canadian dollars (CAD) that took place at Toronto Pearson International Airport in April 2023. Officers are checking if any of the stolen gold or money came to India.
Here’s what happened: On April 17, 2023, a cargo container filled with gold bars was stolen using fake documents from a secure storage area. The stolen goods included 6,600 gold bars, weighing a total of 400 kg, and cash worth 2.5 million CAD. The gold bars were brought from Switzerland and were supposed to go to a bank in Toronto.
After the airplane landed, the cargo was taken to a different spot at the airport, and soon after, it was reported missing. The Peel Regional Police (PRP) in Canada called this the largest gold heist in the country’s history. They charged Panesar and eight others in April 2024 and issued an arrest warrant for him. Panesar and another suspect, Parampal Sidhu, worked at the airport’s warehouse.
The PRP said that after the heist, Panesar even showed police officers around the warehouse! While Sidhu was arrested in May 2024, Panesar disappeared. Canadian authorities are still trying to find the stolen gold, and so far, they have recovered only 90,000 CAD out of the total stolen.
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