Cargo theft: 12 Punjabis arrested in US for multi-million dollar transport fraud
PTC Web Desk: In a major crackdown on organised cargo theft, the US authorities have arrested 12 members of a transnational gang operating under the name ‘Singh Organisation’ for allegedly orchestrating a multi-million-dollar transport fraud across the western states of California and Washington.
According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, the accused have been identified as Paramvir Singh (29), Harpreet Singh (26), Arshpreet Singh (27), all residents of Rancho Cucamonga; Sandeep Singh (31) of San Bernardino; Mandeep Singh (42) and Ranjodh Singh (38) of Bakersfield; Gurnek Singh Chauhan (40), Vikramjeet Singh (30), and Narayan Singh (27) of Fontana; Bikramjeet Singh (27) of Sacramento; Himmat Singh Khalsa (28) of Renton, Washington; and their associate Elgar Hernandez (27), also from Fontana.
Officials revealed that the arrests followed a multi-agency investigation launched after hundreds of complaints were filed between 2021 and 2024 regarding the disappearance of valuable goods during transport. The investigation teams, formed jointly by police departments in California and Washington, discovered that the accused had created a fake logistics and transport network posing as legitimate trucking companies.
The gang allegedly accepted contracts to deliver high-value cargo, loaded the goods, and instead of transporting them to the designated destinations, sold the merchandise illegally for profit.
Law enforcement officers stated that the suspects were apprehended in coordinated raids after substantial evidence was collected against them. Investigators are now determining whether the stolen goods were sold directly by the gang or offloaded to third-party resellers at reduced prices.
The large-scale operation was carried out through the joint efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Riverside Island Task Force, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Fontana Police Department, and California Highway Patrol.
Authorities said the investigation remains ongoing, as officials continue to trace the full extent of the gang’s four-year-long cargo theft network and the financial losses incurred by affected transport companies.
- With inputs from agencies
