{
  "id": 15687966,
  "title": "Behind bars, beyond borders: Inside Lawrence Bishnoi’s crime empire",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/20/behind-bars-beyond-borders-inside-lawrence-bishnois-crime-empire",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-20T02:44:31.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Hindustan Times",
    "slug": "hindustan-times",
    "url": "https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/behind-bars-beyond-borders-inside-lawrence-bishnoi-s-crime-empire-101792463776919.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In Juhu, Mumbai, a popular young actor experienced a life-threatening incident on a Sunday evening. After playing football, he drove away in his chauffeur-driven luxury vehicle when three men emerged from close quarters and fired seven shots at him. The actor suffered injuries from the shattered glass but managed to escape. The culprits were apprehended 15 hours later from Kota, Rajasthan.\n\nA man named Anil Pandit, a member of a gang led by Lawrence Bishnoi, took responsibility for the attack via an audio recording posted on X. Pandit, along with another individual named Harman Sandhu, has gained prominence recently due to various murders, including those of singer Sidhu Moosewala in May 2022 and politician Baba Siddiqui in October 2024. The gang is also suspected of the June 2023 killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.\n\nPandit, 32, has become the face of the group, while Brar serves as Bishnoi's deputy. The FBI considers this criminal organization an Organized Crime Group (OCG). Pandit, originally from Rair Kalan village in Haryana's Panipat, fled India in 2023, reportedly traveling to the US via Canada and Thailand. He operates from California, collaborating with Randeep Malik and Ravinder Singh Dhanda, both part of the Bishnoi syndicate.\n\nPandit's name appeared in several incidents involving shooting and extortion this year, including attacks on a gym owner associated with Guru Randhawa, a jewelry showroom in Pune, and two incidents in Bhiwadi and Sonipat. The Delhi Police and Haryana Police are investigating these cases. Another individual named by Pandit, Harmanveer Singh (Sandhu), was also placed on the FBI's wanted list in June.\n\nLawrence Bishnoi, who has been incarcerated in Gujarat’s Sabarmati jail since 2023, started his gang in the late 2000s, only to be arrested and jailed for a few years before running it again. His rise to power began post-2013, aided by social media, which helped expand the gang's influence. Bishnoi's ambitions initially lay in sports, but he soon became involved in university politics and eventually shifted to crime.",
  "summary": "Bishnoi started his gang in the late 2000s and ran it for just a few years before being arrested and jailed, a fact that both adds to the mystique about him.",
  "key_points": [
    "Lawrence Bishnoi's gang member Anil Pandit admits to attacks via audio recording.",
    "Pandit fled India in 2023, operating from California with associates.",
    "Lawrence Bishnoi's gang is considered an Organized Crime Group by the FBI."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The ability of incarcerated leaders to command international syndicates through digital tools signals a shift where physical imprisonment no longer serves as a barrier to global organized crime.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}