The U.S. Department of Justice alleged on July 8, 2026, that Lawrence Bishnoi used WhatsApp from Sabarmati jail to extort victims in the United States as recently as January 2026. Bishnoi, who is accused of ordering the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, faces new claims of directing crimes from prison.
The U.S. Department of Justice said Bishnoi and associate Satinderjeet Singh, also known as Goldy Brar, used contraband devices to direct extortions, assassinations, and other crimes. It claimed the gang targeted victims in Los Angeles and Thousand Oaks for five million dollars.
Bishnoi has been held in Sabarmati jail in Ahmedabad since 2023 under solitary confinement and constant surveillance, according to his lawyer Rajni Khatri. She stated that he only meets his legal team and questioned the lack of evidence for the new allegations.
The National Investigation Agency filed a chargesheet in 2022 that made similar claims about Bishnoi running operations from prison. The agency listed dozens of cases against him dating back to 2010.
Khatri noted that Bishnoi has been acquitted in 40 cases and attributed his decision not to seek bail to the number of pending cases against him.
