A sting operation carried out by the US Drug Enforcement Administration at Vancouver Port has brought to light how Pakistan's ISI is helping Chinese suppliers smuggle fentanyl to Latin American drug cartels with the support of gangs based in British Columbia.
The details were revealed in a 29-page affidavit submitted by the DEA, which carried out investigations in Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Australia, Hong Kong, Dubai and Tukey.
Who is Opinder Singh Sian?
One of the key players in the fentanyl smuggling racket is an Indian-origin Canadian, identified as Opinder Singh Sian. Also known by aliases Opie, Thanos and Cain, Sian is reportedly the head of the Brothers Keepers gang, which acts as a major Canadian proxy to the notorious Sinaloa cartel in Mexico. He received support from Turkish trafficker Ibrahim Ozcelik, according to the DEA. The international trafficking network carefully planned the movement of drug shipments from Latin America
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Sian's Brothers Keepers gang has connections with other cartels in Latin America and chemical suppliers in China. They have also worked with the Dubai-based Irish crime family the Kinahans as well as the Iranian proxy group Hezbollah.
Sian was arrested in Arizona for conspiring to export methamphetamine and will appear before a US court on July 21. Using Canada as a hub, he reportedly helped move drugs from Vancouver to Los Angeles.
Indian security officials quoted by News18 reported that Sian was a "critical intermediary" between ISI handlers and Chinese suppliers, who exploit Canada's "permissive legal and political environment" to traffick synthetic opioids. Indian agencies have identified 40 Indo-Canadians who support this network's extremist operations in Punjab, Delhi and Kashmir, said the report.
