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21 Charged in Ontario's Largest Drug Bust
Police seized C$139 million in drugs and 17 firearms after a cross-border investigation.
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Ankita Baidya - Sat, 25, Jul 2026
- 06:15 EDT
- 16
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Police display part of the C$139 million worth of drugs and 17 firearms seized in Project Bay. / File Photo
Twenty-one people have been charged following what authorities described as the largest drug seizure in Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) history, after a cross-border investigation uncovered nearly 1.7 tonnes of suspected illegal drugs valued at more than C$139 million, along with 17 firearms, including a rare anti-tank rifle.
The investigation, known as Project Bay, resulted in the seizure of 973 kilograms of suspected cocaine, 660 kilograms of suspected methamphetamine, 49 kilograms of suspected opium and 230 oxycodone tablets, according to a joint news release issued by the OPP and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
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Investigators also recovered ammunition, prohibited weapons, C$80,000 in cash, US$10,000, high-end jewelry, money counters, 43 cellphones, six laptops and a vehicle identified as offence-related property.
According to an official addendum released by investigators, several individuals of Indian origin are among those charged.
They include Gagandip Thindal, 27, of Brampton, who faces 10 charges including conspiracy to import cocaine and unauthorized possession of a firearm; Simranjit Singh, 32, of Brampton, facing 12 charges including cocaine trafficking and importation; and Kanwarpal Kular, 32, of LaSalle, Jatinderpal Singh, 39, of Brampton, and Jasvinder Sohi, 55, of Brampton, each charged with two counts of conspiracy to import cocaine and conspiracy to possess cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
Also named in the addendum are Tejwinder Sandhu, 29; Harjwinder Sandhu, 33; Haninderpal Grewal, 34, of Barrie; Tarminder Singh, 19, of Brampton, who faces nine charges including cocaine and heroin trafficking; Steven Scussolin, 32, and Michele Moscone, 28, both of Windsor, with Moscone facing 26 charges including 11 counts of unauthorized possession of firearms.
Additional individuals charged include Avtar Sahota, 54, of Shelburne; Mohamed Binhassan, 41, of Toronto; Gundeep Tariwal, 32, of Brampton; Shawn Batte, 44, of Corunna; Zain Khawaja, 28, of Windsor; Villy Schwartz, 30, of Markham; and Mehakpreet Singh, 24, and Karandeep Singh, 27, both of Brampton, who face multiple firearms- and drug-trafficking-related charges.
Police said two additional suspects, ages 22 and 28, both from Windsor, remain outstanding. Arrest warrants have been issued, though their names were withheld in the official addendum.
Most of those charged have appeared, or are scheduled to appear, before the Ontario Court of Justice in Toronto or Sarnia between July and October 2026. Court records listed outcomes ranging from remand in custody to release on bail or undertaking.
Authorities said the investigation began in January 2025, when the Windsor Police Service launched a drug trafficking probe. The operation later expanded into a joint investigation involving the CBSA, OPP, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Toronto Police Service, Peel Regional Police, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
Police described Project Bay as one of the largest coordinated cross-border organized crime investigations in recent years and said the operation disrupted a major drug trafficking network operating between Canada and the United States.
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