Canadian accused of killing Indian-origin gangster extradited to Thailand
Darpan News Desk IANS, 31 May, 2023 01:23 PM
Toronto, May 31 (IANS) A former Canadian soldier and alleged hitman has been extradited to Thailand where he has been charged with the murder of an Indian-origin gangster in Phuket last year, media reports said.
Matthew Dupre, 38, who allegedly gunned down Jimi 'Slice' Sandhu in February 2022, arrived in Bangkok on a special air force flight on Sunday night, The Bangkok Post reported.
Sandhu, who grew up in Abbotsford, was connected to the United Nation Gang, which was founded in the Fraser Valley in 1997.
On February 11, 2022, the Phuket court issued a warrant for the arrest of Dupre and his alleged accomplice on charges of premeditated murder, having guns and ammunition in possession without permission and illegally carrying and using the guns in public.
A police investigation later found the two suspects left Thailand for Canada on February 6, the report said.
Dupre was arrested on February 20, 2022 by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) at his home in Sylvan Lake, Alberta.
His extradition was approved last December by the Court of Alberta, Edmonton, under the 1999 Extradition Act of Canada.
The second wanted suspect killer in the case died in a small-plane crash in Canada in May 2022.
Dupre denied all the charges against him, media reports said citing police officials.
The statement from Vancouver police says 34-year-old Jeff Jeanty died in a suspicious fire on Jan. 3, but due to the "sensitive nature" of the investigation, few details could be provided at the time. The woman, in her 20s with a fair complexion, is described as 5’8” tall, with a small to medium build.
The investigation resulted in CFSEU-BC executed 13 search warrants between October 13, 2022 and January 23, 2023 in several Peace Region communities and 23 people were arrested and released pending charge approval and the judicial process.
The 74-year-old victim was standing at a bus stop near Main and Keefer streets at 5:30 a.m. when a stranger walked up behind her and pushed her to the ground. The woman was taken to hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.
VPD officers, who had been patrolling the area after reports of a group of teens knocking over planters and kicking doors, located the injured victim, then arrested the suspects nearby.
45 year old Norvie Nativdad of New Westminster has been charged with Possession of Stolen Property Over $5000, Breach of Undertaking Order, Breach of Release Order, and Unauthorized use of credit card.
B.C.'s Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma says the province reached out to Public Safety Canada on Monday morning, just hours after the quake, because such emergency assistance needs to be co-ordinated.
