During the checks, investigators found that 73 flat owners had failed to submit Form-C, a statutory requirement whenever a foreign national stays in private accommodation, hotels or guest houses.
“There was blood everywhere — on the street, in the house, all over his face. They made sure before they left, even kicking him in the head, that he wasn’t moving.”
The man arrested has not been named by the AFP, but authorities have confirmed he is a former Melbourne resident Kazem Hamad who was deported from Australia in 2023 and has been a key figure of interest in investigations into drug trafficking and violent organised crime.
The Crown also outlined the background of Gurkaran Singh, telling the court he arrived in Canada on a student visa less than a month before the killings and was expected to attend college in Dawson Creek, but never enrolled.
According to the Congressional Research Service, about 705 Somali nationals were enrolled in TPS last year, out of nearly 1.3 million people covered by the program across all countries.
Two suspects remain at large: 33-year-old Simran Preet Panesar of Brampton, believed to be in India, for whom a Canada-wide arrest warrant and extradition request have been issued; and 36-year-old Prasath Paramalingam of Brampton, who failed to appear in court in August 2024.
Swatting involves making false reports to emergency services to provoke a large-scale police or emergency response and is considered a serious criminal offence.
Prof. Varshney, Director of the Centre for Crop and Food Innovation (CCFI), the WA State Agricultural Biotechnology Centre, and Murdoch University’s International Chair in Agriculture and Food Security, is one of only four Australians to have received the honour since the list was launched in 2024.
Reflecting on her month-long journey, Paige said the warmth she encountered wherever she travelled was one of the main reasons she had developed such a strong affection for India.
