Record Biggest Lab Seizure Near Vancouver, Canada, CJNG Cartel Member Arrested in India Meth Lab

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

A specialized RCMP unit has taken down the largest drug lab ever found in Canada, seizing record amounts of drugs, precursor chemicals and firearms. Of particular concern were tons of precursor chemicals used to make crystal meth using the Mexican cartel P2P formula which “has not been seen in Western Canada until now,” according to Canadian authorities.

By definition, the drug trafficking trade has been global in nature, but truly has expanded over the last few years with multi-national organized crime groups recruiting and working together in various parts of the manufacturing, smuggling and financing side of the global drug trade.

The bust of the Canadian Super Lab used for mass drug production, along with the arrest of suspect Gaganpreet Randhawa, has underscored the vast reach of drug networks in Canada and the extensive criminal infrastructure supporting drug manufacturing and distribution. In a separate incident, a Mexican CJNG member was arrested during a raid in a New Dehli, India meth lab raid.

India sits only below China in the amount of illicit production and exportation of mass quantities of precursor chemicals for manufacturing meth, fentanyl and other synthetic drugs.

Super Lab Bust

The October 25th operation, which targeted a sprawling drug lab in Falkland, British Columbia, led to the seizure of unprecedented quantities of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other illegal drugs, along with an arsenal of loaded firearms and explosives. Officials from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) described the lab as the most sophisticated ever seen in the country, estimating the dismantling costs alone at over $1 million. They believe organized crime groups with international ties orchestrated the operation to supply Canada and lucrative overseas markets.

Investigators seized 54 kilograms of fentanyl, 390 kilograms of methamphetamine, 35 kilograms of cocaine, 15 kilograms of MDMA, and 89 firearms, including assault rifles, submachine guns, and silencers, highlighting the criminal syndicate’s readiness for armed conflict. The staggering quantities of drugs are estimated to be worth nearly $500 million, with methamphetamine likely destined for markets in Australia and New Zealand, where demand and street prices remain high.

The seized drugs are just one example of how Canadian gangs profit immensely from synthetic drug production, trafficking not only in Canada but also to high-demand international markets, including Australia, where meth can fetch prices up to CAD 185,000 per kilogram. Canadian ports, notably Vancouver, have become key transit points for smuggling operations, with large quantities of meth and precursor chemicals frequently discovered en route to Australia and New Zealand.

The farm where police found Canada's largest synthetic drug lab is owned by an Abbotsford electrician, according to property records. Michael Driehuyzen bought the 163-acre property on Hoath Road in May 2007 for $655,000, Land Title and B.C. Assessment documents show. The property, which is within the Agricultural Land Reserve, is currently assessed at $928,000.

Driehuyzen is not facing any criminal charges in connection with the drug lab. He could not be reached for comment. Evidence linked to slain Independent Soldiers gangster Donald Lyons was found at the property including a semi-truck he owned. He was shot to death in June.

The 51-year-old was closely associated to senior members of the Wolfpack gang alliance, believed to have been operating the Hoath Road lab to produce drugs for the domestic market and for export.

Donnie Lyons was close to Wolfpack gangster Sukhvir Singh Deo, who was fatally shot in Toronto in 2016. And he was also associated with Hells Angel Larry Amero, an original Wolfpack member. Amero is currently serving an 18-year sentence, but is appealing his 2022 convictions for conspiracy to kill rivals Sandip Duhre and Sukh Dhak.

Wolfpack Organized Crime Connections

This case has brought renewed scrutiny to Canada’s interconnected networks of drug trafficking involving persons of Indian origin, organized crime, and violent gang rivalries.

Authorities didn’t identify the transnational groups alleged to be involved, but Canadian gangs including the Hells Angels, Wolfpack and United Nations have long been working at the highest level with Mexican cartels, Asian Triads and Middle Eastern organized crime groups.

Gaganpreet Singh Randhawa, a person of Indian origin, will be presented before the court on November 14, it is suspected that he was running this lab which was located east of Kamloops in the rural community of Falkland.

Gaganpreet Singh Randhawa was 23 years old in 2016 when he was arrested in Burnaby for 'dial-a-dope' trafficking, selling drugs out of his mother's car. In order to pay off his debt from the drugs seized by Burnaby police, his lawyer said Randhawa had his mother sign over her car, which he then handed over to his bosses.

During sentencing in 2017, he told the judge he tried to leave the drug business but was threatened with death by his unnamed bosses. "When I was about a month into selling drugs, I felt really bad about what I was doing to other people," he said in court audio recordings obtained by CBC. "I said I don't want to do it, and they kept telling me pretty much that if you don't, we'll kill you."

Randhawa, now 32 was allegedly been linked to the Wolfpack, a powerful Canadian gang alliance. The Wolfpack, formed in British Columbia over a decade ago and comprising factions of different criminal gangs—Hells Angels, Independent Soldiers, and Red Scorpions—has expanded into international drug trafficking, particularly through partnerships with Mexican cartels, Asian triads, and Middle Eastern groups.

The Brothers Keepers, an Indo-Canadian gang with rivalries against Wolfpack members, has been implicated in numerous high-profile shootings.

Recent years have seen escalating violence among these groups, with incidents like the June 2023 daylight assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Khalistani supporter, intensifying the focus on gang-related violence within a section of the Sikh community in Canada. India had named Nijjar as a wanted figure for his links to the Khalistan movement, an assertion Nijjar’s supporters vehemently denied.

His killing, which remains unsolved, has led to strong speculation that criminal elements might have been involved, given Nijjar’s alleged involvement in the fight for supremacy in the area which also is related to the lucrative drug business.

Hardeep Singh Nijjar was shot and killed by two masked gunmen outside a Sikh temple he led in Surrey, British Columbia.

India has in the past described him as a terrorist who led a militant separatist group - accusations his supporters called unfounded.

Canadian police called his killing a "targeted attack". In September 2023, Trudeau had told Canada's parliament that allegations of Indian involvement in the killing were based on Canadian intelligence. He called the act a violation of Canada's sovereignty.

Canada is home to the largest Sikh community outside India, a religious minority that lives mostly in the state of Punjab.

The recent Falkland bust, along with the murders of Sikh gang members and leaders, has raised concerns over the role of organized crime within specific communities and its impact on broader Canadian society.

Expelled Diplomats

Last month, India and Canada expelled their top envoys along with other diplomats as the tension intensifies over last year's assassination of Nijjar on Canadian soil.

Canadian police began pursuing credible allegations that Indian agents were directly involved in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

Canadian police accused Indian agents of involvement in "homicides, extortion and violent acts" and targeting supporters of the pro-Khalistan movement, which seeks a separate homeland for Sikhs in India.

India has rejected the allegations as "preposterous," accusing Trudeau of pandering to Canada’s large Sikh community for political gain.

With synthetic drugs from labs like Falkland flooding both the domestic and international markets, for the Sikh community in Canada, these incidents underscore a troubling pattern of gang recruitment targeting a section of Sikh youth, as crime networks seek to exploit vulnerable individuals for their operations with allegations of links between some youths in Canada and transnational gangs embroiling the community in a complex web of drugs, politics, and organized crime.

In August 2022, on the list of 11 most wanted gangsters that was released by Canadian police, 9 were of Indian origin, indicating how deeply a section of the said community was affected by gang related crimes.

Pro-Khalistani Connected Groups

Khalistani-linked 'narco-terrorism' networks first emerged in the 1990s in Canada, as highlighted by the high-profile murders of Jimmy and Ron Dosanjh—two drug dealers affiliated with the International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF)—in Vancouver’s gang wars. Jimmy Dosanjh was killed in February 1994, and Ron was killed in April 1994 as per court records.

The arrival of ex-members of the Khalistan movement into Canada opened new channels for cross-continental drug trafficking, enabling collaboration with criminal networks in Punjab.

The arrest of former Punjab wrestling champion and police officer Jagdish Singh Bhola exposed the vast scale, revealing a billion-dollar drug supply network funnelling heroin and methamphetamines from India to North America and Europe through Canadian contacts. 

Bhola’s capture brought to fore the well-organized web of transnational crime linking Canadian-based criminals with Punjab’s drug trade.

In July 2024, a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act court in Mohali convicted and sentenced Bhola to up to 10 years of imprisonment.

CJNG Member Caught in India

The Narcotics Control Bureau and Delhi police have dismantled a methamphetamine manufacturing operation in Gautam Budh Nagar, Uttar Pradesh. Five individuals were arrested, including a member of the Jalisco Nueva Generacion Cartel CJNG and a Tihar Jail warden. 95 kilos of drugs was seized in the operation.

Among those arrested was a Delhi-based businessman, found at the site, who was previously detained by the Department of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) for a narcotics case. He had established connections with the Tihar Jail warden, who allegedly assisted him in procuring the necessary chemicals and equipment for drug production.

The businessman had previously been arrested by Department of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in an NDPS case and had been lodged in Tihar Jail where he came in contact with the Jail warden who became his accomplice, the statement revealed.

The syndicate, which operated using code words and encrypted communication, had links to foreign suppliers based in the UK and the Middle East.

A Mumbai-based chemist was also brought in by the other accused to oversee the manufacturing process, while quality checks were performed by a cartel member residing in Delhi.

“Acting on information that a laboratory had been established in NCR of Delhi for production of synthetic drugs like methamphetamine for export to other countries as well as consumption in India, in which members of Mexican CJNG drug cartel (Cartel De Jalisco Nueva Generación), are also involved, NCB conducted search operation in a factory in Kasana Industrial Area, Gautam Budh Nagar district October 25, 2024 and found about 95 kilos of Methamphetamine in solid and liquid forms. Chemicals like Acetone, Sodium Hydroxide, Methylene Chloride, Premium grade Ethanol, Toluene, Red phosphorus, Ethyl Acetate etc and imported machinery for manufacturing were also found. The Delhi Police’s special cell also participated in the operation as the drug network had footprints across several places in NCR of Delhi.”

Sources Sunday Guardian, Vancouver Sun, Vancouver Sun, Vancouver Sun, India Today, Daily Pioneer, CBC, BBC

Categories: Canada, CJNG