WANTED KILLER NABBED IN INDIA
Fugitive on parole for Vancouver gang hit arrested in connection with a drug lab shipping ketamine to B.C.
A convicted Canadian killer who fled the country while on parole for a 1999 gang hit has been arrested in India as part of a drug ring that has been shipping the drug ketamine to B.C. and beyond.
The RCMP has a Canada-wide warrant out for Kenny Cuong Manh Nguyen, 38, who failed to return from a 2015 trip to Vietnam authorized by the Parole Board of Canada.
According to the warrant, Cuong “contacted his parole officer and indicated that he has decided to remain in Vietnam and will not be returning to Canada.”
Cuong was arrested in Goa, India, last week in connection with a ketamine factory allegedly run by former B.C. gangster Jimi Sandhu.
He had entered India using a Vietnamese passport and didn’t admit to Indian police that he was Canadian at first. When he learned he could be facing a lengthy sentence for his alleged role in the ketamine ring, Cuong said he was from Canada and requested consular services.
Cuong was convicted of a second-degree murder for the fatal gang shooting of 19-yearold Doan Minh Vu in February 1999 outside Madison’s nightclub in downtown Vancouver. Cuong was in a vehicle driven by gang leader Gurmit Dhak, who was convicted of manslaughter for rolling down the window so that Cuong could take a better shot.
Dhak was gunned down in October 2010 outside Burnaby’s Metrotown mall. The aftermath of Dhak’s murder was a bloody eight-year-long gang war that left dozens dead across the Lower Mainland.
Sandhu was charged in 2014 with one of those murders, the fatal stabbing of Red Scorpion leader Matt Campbell.
But after a year in pre-trial custody, the charge against Sandhu was stayed and he was eventually deported to India for earlier convictions.
At his immigration hearing, Sandhu, 28, claimed to be reformed and asked for another chance to stay in Canada despite his criminal history.
He denied being a gang member, but admitted having associates in the Dhak-Duhre group, as well as the United Nations gang.
An Indian official told Postmedia on Wednesday that Sandhu allegedly opened the Goa ketamine factory about three months ago to finish a semi-manufactured version of the chemical that was being made in another state.
And the official, who asked not to be identified because he is not authorized to speak about the case, said that the ketamine was exclusively destined for Canada, as the illicit drug is not popular in India.
Once the ketamine manufacturing process was complete, they would send it to Mumbai, where “they would put it inside these tea sashes and coffee packages and masala packages, which are usually sent by Indians to their relatives in Canada.”
The packages, some of which were seized during the investigation, were being sent via courier to Canadian addresses, he said.
The official also said the packages were professionally sealed and likely wouldn’t have drawn the suspicions of customs agents in either country.
Each couriered shipment contained 53 packages of 100 grams each, so about half a kilogram.
The Canadian recipients of the ketamine are believed to have been paying the manufactures in India through “hawala” — a system where the money is paid at the Canadian end to a broker, who then has an associate at the Indian end pay the debt.
The official also said investigators believe cocaine sent from North America was also used as payment.
Sandhu was the second in command of the ketamine operation, while another Canadian with the nickname “Laddy” is being sought as the gang’s suspected leader, the official said.
Sandhu was allegedly workingcloselywithaBritishman living in Goa named Jonathan Thorn, who has drug convictions in the U.K., he said.
During raids last week in several Indian states, police seized 308 kilograms of ketamine, precursor chemicals, as well as hash, cocaine and opium.
The criminal proceedings could take years, the official said. The mandatory sentence for a first-time conviction is 12 years.
The RCMP had no comment Wednesday on whether officers would be following up with Indian authorities on the Cuong warrant.
“The RCMP cannot comment on the actions of government and law enforcement in other countries,” Sgt. Marie Damian said in an email. kbolan@postmedia.com twitter.com/kbolan