Fugitive Gangster’s Deportation: Anmol Bishnoi Heads Back to India Over Baba Siddique Slaying
In a significant development for Indian law enforcement, Anmol Bishnoi—a key suspect in the brazen murder of Nationalist Congress Party leader Baba Siddique—has been deported from the United States and is now making his way back to India. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is overseeing the logistics of his return, amid reports that the fugitive could arrive in Delhi as early as Wednesday morning.
Sources close to the matter indicated that Bishnoi, who had evaded capture for months, departed U.S. soil late Tuesday aboard what may be a specialized charter flight ferrying approximately 200 undocumented individuals. The flight could also transport two other fugitives sought by Punjab authorities, though details remain under wraps pending official verification. While Indian agencies have yet to issue a formal statement, confirmation came swiftly from Zeeshan Siddique, the slain leader’s son and a Mumbai MLA.
The notification, routed through DHS-VINE—a secure online platform designed to alert victims of crimes linked to immigrants in U.S. custody—arrived on Tuesday. It explicitly stated: “This email is to inform you ANMOL BISHNOI has been removed from the United States by the federal government. The offender was removed on Nov 18, 2025.” Zeeshan had previously pressed U.S. officials for updates after Mumbai police reported a lack of communication regarding Bishnoi’s location.
Bishnoi’s capture traces back to November 2024, when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained him in Sacramento, California, for unlawful entry. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) later verified his identity via DNA and voice analysis. While in custody at Iowa’s Pottawattamie County prison—where his profile briefly appeared online, listing him under ICE scrutiny for cross-border offenses—Bishnoi unsuccessfully sought asylum.
His criminal profile first drew intense scrutiny following a April 2024 shooting outside Bollywood star Salman Khan’s Mumbai residence. A Facebook post, allegedly from Bishnoi, claimed responsibility, and police uncovered an audio clip of him coordinating with shooter Vicky Gupta. The plot thickened months later on October 12, 2024, when Baba Siddique was gunned down near his son’s Bandra office; Mumbai police promptly named Bishnoi in their chargesheet, accusing him of masterminding the hit.
Bishnoi’s rap sheet extends far beyond these high-profile cases. He faces allegations of supplying weapons and support to the assailants who killed Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala in May 2022. Fleeing India in April 2024 on a fake passport under the alias Bhanu Pratap, he had holed up in California with associates like Goldy Brar. By October 2024, the NIA slapped a Rs 10 lakh bounty on his head, tying him to Siddique’s assassination. Mumbai authorities then petitioned a court for extradition and looped in the Ministry of External Affairs via the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Hailing from Fazilka, Punjab, the 25-year-old Bishnoi is embroiled in 18 cases spanning murder, extortion, and terror-related activities. The NIA has filed two chargesheets against him since 2022, including one last year implicating him and jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi in a sprawling conspiracy. That probe alleged the network plotted to assassinate influential figures—social activists, religious leaders, celebrities, musicians, and entrepreneurs—to sow widespread fear.
As Bishnoi’s return looms, it marks a potential turning point in unraveling a web of cross-border gang violence that has gripped India for years. Indian investigators, long frustrated by his U.S. hideout, now eye a cascade of interrogations to dismantle the syndicate’s operations.