Classified CBSA report reveals Bishnoi gang's reliance on Canada's student visa program for organized crime

A classified intelligence report obtained by Global News shows how India's Bishnoi gang has exploited Canada's student visa system to expand its criminal operations, with gang members on study and work permits involved in murders, extortions, and political assassinations across the country.

The Canada Border Services Agency's "Tactical Guide: The Bishnoi Gang — An Emerging Threat in Canada" was circulated to immigration officers in December 2025. It documents the gang's "growing operational presence in Canada" and "demonstrated use of Canada's immigration programs for criminal purposes."

Goldy Brar, the gang's top lieutenant, arrived in Canada in 2017 on a student visa ostensibly to attend Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, B.C. — though records show it is "unknown" if he ever attended class. Instead, he helped Bishnoi expand the organization's Canadian operations and allegedly orchestrated high-profile murders and an extortion crisis targeting South Asian communities.

The CBSA report cites a dramatic shift in criminal trends: while Canada's overall extortion rate dropped 10 per cent in 2024, charges against Indian citizens for extortion spiked 47 per cent. As investigators examined extortion cases, two patterns emerged — the name Goldy Brar and suspects on student and work visas.

Crimes by Indian student permit holders soared 8,800 per cent between 2016 and 2024, according to the report, which ranked India the "top source" country of foreign students charged with crimes. Between 2019 and 2023, 4,000 Indian citizens on study permits were charged with 17,929 offences; a third of those charges were serious or organized crime-related, and 97 per cent of those offences were violent. In 2024 alone, over 13,040 criminal charges were laid against Indian citizens in Canada on study visas.

The report notes these statistics "likely underrepresent the extent of the issue as many crimes go undetected and unreported." While the figures are striking, the report acknowledges that those charged represent just over one per cent of the 188,125 Indian students in Canada that year.

When the government capped foreign student visas in late 2024, it cited pressure on housing. The CBSA report suggests another consequence: disrupting a pipeline the Bishnoi gang had relied on to staff its Canadian operations.