B.C. Seeks to Seize Two Metro Vancouver Homes of Alleged Drug-Smuggling Boss
Sarah Desjardins
7/16/20262 min read
The B.C. government is seeking to seize two Metro Vancouver properties belonging to alleged drug-trafficking boss Ravinder Singh Dhanda, who was among the lead targets of an international organized crime crackdown earlier this month.
According to a notice of claim filed in B.C. Supreme Court, the province’s Director of Civil Forfeiture is targeting homes owned by Dhanda and his spouse, Manjit Kaur Dhanda, in White Rock and Surrey.
The claim alleges the defendants did not have sufficient lawful employment, income or legitimate business income to acquire, finance, improve, maintain or preserve the properties.
The allegations have not been proven in court.
Province Alleges Properties Linked to Drug Trafficking
The civil forfeiture claim alleges Ravinder Dhanda and his associates coordinated the storage, transport, smuggling and distribution of bulk quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine and other controlled substances across international borders, primarily between the United States and Canada.
The claim says the alleged activity happened on a weekly basis.
It also alleges Dhanda helped coordinate the movement of controlled substances to organized crime groups across Canada and directed or conspired with others in his alleged drug-trafficking organization.
According to the claim, Dhanda directly or indirectly engaged in, facilitated, benefited from or was associated with unlawful activity, including trafficking controlled substances.
The director also alleges Manjit Dhanda knew, ought to have known, or was willfully blind to how the properties were being used.
Homes Assessed at More Than $6M Combined
The claim says the couple became owners of the Surrey property in 2003 and the White Rock property in 2021.
Mortgages and liens are registered on both homes.
The White Rock property is assessed at nearly $3.7 million, while the Surrey property is assessed at nearly $2.7 million.
The province alleges the properties are both proceeds and instruments of unlawful activity.
The claim also alleges the homes were used to engage in unlawful activities that included laundering proceeds of crime, providing or collecting property for terrorist activities and failing to declare taxable income.
Operation Hard Ball Led to Dozens of Charges
The civil claim references Operation Hard Ball, an investigation launched in 2023 by the FBI and the RCMP’s federal policing Pacific region.
The operation targeted alleged criminal activity involving international drug trafficking, extortion, racketeering and violence.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the investigation led to 37 defendants being charged across three indictments.
Three defendants, including Dhanda, were arrested in B.C.
Dhanda remains in custody while awaiting a bail hearing as part of extradition proceedings.
Civil Forfeiture Does Not Require Criminal Conviction
Unsealed indictments in the broader case detail charges against three separate alleged groups: the Bishnoi Organized Crime Group, a gang linked to imprisoned Indian national Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, and Dhanda’s alleged drug-trafficking operation.
In civil forfeiture proceedings, the province does not need to prove a criminal charge or conviction.
Instead, the director must establish that the property is either the proceeds of unlawful activity or an instrument used to carry it out.
The case will now proceed through the B.C. Supreme Court civil process.
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