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Ontario man sentenced to 20 years in U.S. for leading cross-border drug ring
Federal prosecutors said Guramrit Sidhu moved about 1,918 pounds of methamphetamine and cocaine in eight truckloads before his plea agreement.
On Thursday, United States District Judge John A. Kronstadt sentenced Guramrit Sidhu of Brampton, Ontario, to 20 years in federal prison for leading a cross-border drug trafficking organization that moved narcotics worth up to $17 million.
Between September 2020 and February 2023, Sidhu directed an organization using long-haul transport trucks to move bulk methamphetamine and cocaine into Canada, with an estimated wholesale value of about $15 million.
To manage logistics, Sidhu provided couriers with specific phone numbers and serial numbers on cash bills as identification "tokens" during handoffs, facilitating transport of over 1,900 pounds of narcotics seized by authorities.
Operation Hard Ball, an international sweep, dismantled the syndicate with Sidhu as the eighth defendant to plead guilty; co-conspirators received prison sentences ranging from 27 to 108 months.
Canadian authorities assisted the Justice Department in arresting and extraditing Sidhu from Canada in 2024, reflecting collaboration between the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and United States law enforcement.