Punjab Police Deports Wanted Gangster Gurwinder Singh Alias Afridi From Ethiopia After 10-Month Manhunt

Chandigarh: Punjab Police deported wanted gangster Gurwinder Singh alias ‘Afridi’ from Ethiopia following a 10-month international manhunt under Operation SHAHID, Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said on Sunday.

Addressing the media, Yadav said the intelligence-led operation was initiated on January 20, 2026, under the directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.

The DGP said, “An operation initiated on January 20, 2026, targeting gangsters under the directives of CM Bhagwant Mann, a successful intelligence-led operation was carried out. Through the collaborative efforts of these units, along with central agencies and the Indian Embassy in Ethiopia, a wanted fugitive, Gurwinder Singh ‘Afridi’, was deported from Ethiopia on November 6, 2026.”

Yadav said Afridi had obtained a passport in the name of Vijender Singh and used the passport to travel to the UAE on March 31, 2025.

“On February 12, 2025, Afridi had obtained a passport in the name of Vijender Singh, listing an address in Gorakhpur, through the Regional Passport Office (RPO) in Lucknow. Using this passport, he managed to escape to the UAE on March 31, 2025. We first learned of his whereabouts through human intelligence, which we then developed further,” Yadav said.

The DGP further said Afridi had acquired a fake Mexican passport. However, he was detained and deported to the UAE.

“He had even acquired a fake Mexican passport and attempted to convince the authorities that he was a Mexican national, not Afridi. He was subsequently detained and deported back to the UAE. He is now in our custody.”

Yadav said more than seven Interpol notices had been issued in connection with Afridi during the operation. He added that the gangster was involved in more than 30 serious criminal cases and that interrogation had revealed his alleged involvement in additional cases, including five murders, according to police records.

“Over the course of this entire process, more than seven Interpol notices were issued, all concerning this single individual, Gurwinder Afridi. He is involved in over 30 heinous cases. Following his interrogation, his involvement in several additional cases has come to light; specifically, according to our records, he is implicated in five murders,” the DGP said.

Punjab Police’s Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF), in coordination with the Overseas Fugitive Tracking and Extradition Cell (OFTEC) of Counter Intelligence, Punjab, and with support from central agencies, has secured the deportation of Gurwinder alias Afridi, a key kingpin of the Doni Bal-Prabh Dassuwal gang, from Ethiopia following a 10-month-long international manhunt under Operation SHAHID.