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.
A total of 90.77 kilograms of cocaine was seized from the hidden compartments, which has an estimated wholesale value of more than $5 million. Steven Christopher Fera, 45, of Calgary, and Jason Jamie Chan, 38, of Surrey, are charged with two counts each of possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
Police have identified and located two youth who are believed to be the source of the threat. There is no continued threat to the public or the school. The school lifted their lockdown with classes resuming as normal.
It says police identified two robbery suspects and, during an altercation, an officer shot and killed a man. The authority says the second suspect was taken into custody and no one else was hurt.
Mayor Michael Behiel has proclaimed it “2017-18 Humboldt Broncos Day” and encouraged people to take a moment of silence as the bells echo around 4:50 p.m., the approximate time the crash occurred five years ago.
Mayor Ken Sim ordered the long-standing encampment removed after the city's police and fire chiefs warned of escalating crime and an unacceptable fire risk. At the camp's peak, about 180 structures covered the sidewalk along the busy street.
Drivers are reminded that the Pattullo Bridge between Surrey and New Westminster will be closed in both directions starting on Thursday, April 6, at 10 p.m. and reopening on Tuesday, April 11, at 5 a.m. Drivers should take the Port Mann or Alex Fraser bridges as alternate routes.
