- Friday, February 28, 2025
In February, Rajinder Pal Singh pleaded guilty and admitted to his involvement in a smuggling ring that brought hundreds of Indian nationals from Canada, earning him over $500,000.
By: Shubham Ghosh
A 49-YEAR-OLD man of Indian origin, Rajinder Pal Singh, also known as Jaspal Gill, has been sentenced to over three years in prison for smuggling more than 800 Indian citizens into the United States using the ride-hailing app Uber.
Singh, aka aka Jaspal Gill, pleaded guilty in February and admitted to his involvement in a smuggling ring that brought hundreds of Indian nationals across the border from Canada, earning him over $500,000, the US department of justice said in a press release.
In a US district court, Singh, a resident of California, was sentenced to 45 months in prison for Conspiracy to Transport and Harbor Certain Aliens for Profit and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering, according to acting US attorney Tessa M Gorman, Western District of Washington.
Over a period of four years, Singh organised the smuggling of more than 800 individuals into the US through the northern border and Washington State, said Gorman.
This not only posed security risks for Washington but also exposed the smuggled individuals to dangers and hazards during the often lengthy smuggling route from India to the US.
“Mr Singh’s participation in this conspiracy preyed upon the Indian nationals’ hopes for a better life in the US while saddling those smuggled with a crushing debt of as much as USD 70,000,” Gorman said.
Records from the case revealed that Singh and his co-conspirators used Uber from July 2018 to transport people who had illegally crossed the border from Canada to the Seattle area, the press release said.
During this period, Singh arranged over 600 trips for the transportation of Indian nationals who were smuggled into the US. The smuggling ring’s 17 Uber accounts accumulated charges exceeding $80,000 between July 2018 and April 2022.
The press release noted that Singh’s accomplices utilised one-way vehicle rentals to transport the smuggled individuals to their final destinations outside of Washington state. These trips, which typically began near the border in the early hours of the day, were divided among different rides.
The smuggling ring employed sophisticated methods to launder the illicit proceeds. In his plea agreement, Singh acknowledged that the purpose of the complex money transfers was to conceal the illegal nature of the funds. During the investigation, authorities discovered approximately $45,000 in cash and counterfeit identity documents at one of Singh’s California residences.
Following his prison term, Singh, who is unlawfully present in the US, is likely to face deportation, the release added.
(With agency inputs)
