CHANDIGARH: A US federal court has postponed the sentencing of Nikhil Gupta, who pleaded guilty to his role in an alleged plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, to November 20.
This, after the United States (US) government requested the federal court in New York to delay the sentencing.
A letter filed on August 3 by Office of US Attorney James Macdonald before US District Court Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York states that Pannun wants to attend the sentencing hearing and would be out of the country during the previously scheduled sentencing date on September 25.
The government has conferred with the defence, which has no objection to an adjournment. According to the filing, Pannun would be available to attend on or after October 22.
"The Government respectfully requests the court to grant a brief adjournment to effectuate the victim’s statutory rights to attend and be heard at the sentencing,” prosecutors stated.
Thus the Court has reportedly already granted the request and rescheduled Gupta's sentencing to November 20.
The 54-year-old Gupta had earlier admitted to attempting to contact a hitman to carry out the killing of Pannun, who holds dual US and Canadian citizenship.
While court filings do not name the victim, Pannun’s counsel has publicly identified him as the target of the alleged murder-for-hire plot.
Gupta pleaded guilty on February 13 to all three charges against him: murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with the alleged plot to kill Pannun.
The murder-for-hire charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, while the conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire charge also carries a maximum sentence of 10 years. The money-laundering conspiracy charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.
The case stems from an alleged 2023 plot to arrange the killing of Pannun in the United States.
