Metro Worker Arrested in LA as Part of India-Linked Transnational Crime Bust

24 arrested across the US, Canada and Europe in Operation Hard Ball targeting the Bhagwanpuria crime ring. A Southern California Metro worker was among those detained.

Metro employee detained in El Monte as federal agencies dismantle India-based crime syndicate

A Southern California Metro worker is among 24 people arrested in a sweeping federal operation targeting a transnational organised crime ring, Google News MT — Crime (en) reports, citing Tuesday's announcement by federal authorities in Los Angeles.

Justin Guzman, 26, was taken into custody at the El Monte Transit Center, where he is employed. Video footage captured him being escorted from the Metro offices and placed into a federal vehicle. Shortly after his arrest, FBI and DEA agents searched an apartment in Highland Park where Guzman lives, as well as a second residence in the same neighbourhood that officials say he has frequented. Agents were not seen leaving either property with items.

Federal prosecutors allege Guzman is an associate of the Bhagwanpuria Organized Crime Ring, an India-based syndicate that operated within the Central District of California and beyond. Two of the group's main leaders are already imprisoned in India.

Eight of the 24 arrests made so far involve individuals from Southern California. Tuesday's operation — carried out under the name "Operation Hard Ball" — spanned the United States, Canada and Europe.

Among the crimes alleged is the 2023 assassination of a prominent Sikh political and religious figure, identified in court documents only as "H.S.N.," in Canada. The organisation is further accused of extortion, kidnapping, human smuggling, money laundering, drug trafficking and murder.

Federal prosecutors stated that the groups "flooded communities around the country with massive quantities of cocaine and methamphetamine" and "routinely extorted individuals and their family members in India by threatening them with physical harm and death," targeting in particular communities in the United States and Canada with ties to India.

Investigators seized approximately 1,000 kilograms of cocaine, one kilogram of heroin, $40,000 in cash and twelve firearms in connection with the investigation. A total of 23 search warrants were executed in the Sacramento area and 11 in the Los Angeles area, according to a press release from federal authorities.

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)