Punjabi media personality Sukhvinder Sangha sentenced to 51/2 years for smuggling 108 kgs of meth from U.S.  

SUKHVINDER Kaur Sangha, 47, who has worked in media as a Punjabi language producer and broadcaster for radio and television for the past 10 years, has been sentenced to five and a half years in prison for smuggling 108 kgs of methamphetamine into Canada from the U.S. in October of 2021.

Sangha was charged with one count of unlawful importation of methamphetamine and one count of possessing methamphetamine for the purposes of trafficking. On October 31, 2024, she pleaded guilty to the unlawful importation charge. The Crown stayed the possession for the purpose of trafficking charge.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice John Gibb-Carsley in his ruling said that the primary dispute on sentencing was Sangha’s moral blameworthiness. She asserted that she was informed, indirectly, that if she did not pay $150,000, her teenage son would be harmed or killed. Sangha testified that ultimately she chose to import the drugs in lieu of paying the $150,000.

The judge said: “In my view, Ms. Sangha’s story is not credible and I am not persuaded that it is more likely than not that she was acting under “near duress””

According to “Undisputed Facts” in the ruling, Sangha drove a rental car with a Florida license plate across the United States – Canada border in Surrey, B.C., known as the Pacific Crossing on October 18, 2021 at 4:20 p.m. She presented her Canadian passport and said that she had flown to Washington state the day before for her aunt’s funeral.

Sangha was informed that her vehicle would be subject to a secondary search and was asked to move to facilitate the search of her vehicle. After briefly complying, she fled in her vehicle at high speed. Another CBSA officer observed Sangha’s vehicle speeding northward while the officer was traveling southbound. In response to radio broadcasts, the officer performed a U-turn with emergency lights engaged and chased the vehicle.

Occasionally the officer honked and attempted to pull the vehicle over. Eventually, due to rush hour traffic, Sangha’s vehicle slowed and was ultimately pulled over at 17830 16th Avenue in Surrey.

Police took Sangha into custody and the vehicle was searched. The CBSA discovered four duffel bags containing 108 kgs of methamphetamine. The officers also found two mobile phones and an iPad with Sangha. The iPad had been erased. The police subsequently extracted data from the two seized phones.

The Crown tendered an expert report prepared by Constable Phil Toews of the Abbotsford Police Department. In the Expert Report samples of the methamphetamine were examined and found to be 100% pure. Toews opined that the value of 100 kgs of methamphetamine was between $1 million and $10 million. Constable Toews also opined that someone would be paid $3,000 per kilogram for transporting methamphetamine across the border into Canada.

Sangha made three similar trips to the United States before the October 18, 2021 trip when she was arrested. In the three previous trips which occurred on August 30, 2021, September 14, 2021 and October 5, 2021, she flew to Seattle or Los Angeles, rented a car and returned to Canada a day or two later.

In the ruling released on April 10, the judge wrote: “I have assessed Ms. Sangha’s moral blameworthiness and conclude that she was aware that she was importing a large quantity of illegal drugs into Canada. Given her previous work with youth and police, she would be aware of the harm that methamphetamine can wreak on individuals and society. Importation of illegal narcotics is not a victimless crime, and our courts have recognized that methamphetamine is “highly addictive and particularly harmful””

He added: “Further, drug importation and the illegal narcotics trade is intimately integrated into wider issues of organized crime and contributes to the violence associated with organized crime and other illegal activity. The importation of such a large quantity of drugs is a very serious and grave offence. Ms. Sangha’s choices must have consequences.”

He also noted: “I accept that there are mitigating circumstances and collateral consequences, as set out above. I also accept that although Ms. Sangha was an active participant in the scheme, she was not a principal organizer of the drug importation. In my view, these factors outweigh the aggravating circumstances of the offence.”

The judge said: “Ms. Sangha, I derive no pleasure in sentencing you. You have heard my reasons today. What I hope you heard and understand is that there are significant risks, dangers and consequences associated with the illegal drug trade. It is not a victimless crime.

“I have found that you participated in large scale drug importation and by doing so contributed to an activity that negatively impacts and harms society. I understand that my decision may be difficult for you. I understand that it will impose hardship upon you and your family. However, criminal activity has consequences. My hope is that you can use your time of incarceration productively and positively such that this is your last interaction with the criminal justice system.”

Ruling:www.bccourts.ca/jdb-txt/sc/26/06/2026BCSC0655.htm