NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Seattle, WA, April 18, 2026: A British Columbia woman who once worked in Punjabi-language broadcasting has been sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison after attempting to smuggle more than 100 kilograms of methamphetamine into Canada from the United States, in a case that has drawn attention across multiple Canadian media outlets.
Sukhvinder Kaur Sangha, 47, pleaded guilty in 2024 to unlawful importation. She was arrested in October 2021 after fleeing a border inspection at the Pacific Highway crossing in Surrey, according to court records reported by outlets including CBC News and The Canadian Press.
The sentence was delivered April 10 by Justice John Gibb-Carsley of the Supreme Court of British Columbia in New Westminster.
According to details carried across multiple reports, Sangha arrived at the border in a rental vehicle with Florida plates and told officers she had been in Washington state for her aunt’s funeral. When she was directed to secondary inspection, she sped away from the checkpoint, prompting a police chase before being stopped along 16th Avenue in Surrey.
A search of the vehicle uncovered four duffel bags containing approximately 108 kilograms of methamphetamine. Authorities estimated the drugs’ value between $1 million and $10 million. Some reports noted the drugs were concealed in containers, including jars, a method sometimes used to mask odor during transport.
Investigators from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were involved in the seizure following the pursuit.
In sentencing reasons cited widely by Canadian media, Justice Gibb-Carsley rejected Sangha’s claim that she had been coerced into the smuggling operation through threats against her son. The judge found her testimony “untruthful,” stating that it undermined any genuine expression of remorse.
“I expect that Ms. Sangha is remorseful because she was caught and now must face the consequences of her actions, but that is different than being remorseful for her offending behaviour,” he wrote.
Text message evidence presented in court indicated Sangha was a “trusted and willing participant” in the operation, with communications suggesting prior involvement in similar cross-border trips. The tone and content of those messages, the judge said, did not support her claim that she acted out of fear.
Court records show Sangha was born in Prince George, B.C., and worked for about a decade as a Punjabi-language radio and television producer. She reported on crime and interviewed public figures, including politicians, police officers, and celebrities, giving her a degree of recognition within the local South Asian community.
The case has been covered by several Canadian publications, highlighting both the scale of the drug seizure and the unusual profile of the आरोपी as a media figure within the Punjabi diaspora.
