Canada: Indian student killed in ‘violent carjacking’ incident; probe underway by cops

A 24-year-old Indian student, Gurvinder Nath, who worked as a food delivery driver in Canada, died after he was violently attacked during a carjacking incident, news reports said.

Nath – who is originally from Punjab’s Karimpur Chahwala village and went to Canada in 2021 as an international student at the Loyalist College in Toronto – was delivering pizza on July 9 at around 2:10 AM.

He was lured by his attackers in the area of Britannia Road and Creditview, Mississauga, on the pretext of placing a food order earlier this month. When Nath arrived at the place with the delivery, he was violently assaulted by unknown assailants and robbed of his vehicle.

Nath was left at the scene with life-threatening injuries, and he was rushed to a trauma centre, where he succumbed to his injuries on July 14.

Multiple people involved in carjacking attack on Indian student in Canada: Cops

“Investigators do believe that there are multiple suspects involved and that the food order was placed as a means of luring the driver to this specific area,” Inspector Phil King of Peel Regional Police’s Homicide Bureau said.

Inspector King added that investigators have obtained an audio recording of the Pizza Pizza order placed before the attack on Nath. Nath’s vehicle was found abandoned by the police in the Old Derry Road and Old Creditview Road area in Mississauga, which is less than 5km from the crime scene.

Police – who believe that Nath was an innocent victim – have a possible vehicle used by the assailants– a 2012 to 2017 white Hyundai Accent sedan, which has a distinctive flashing blue light at the top of the windshield.

In a CCTV footage, a male described as wearing dark clothing is seen exiting the suspected vehicle, the police said, adding that the investigation is underway to locate the person.

Siddhartha Nath, Consul General of India in Toronto, said, “It was heartening for me to see how the community responded, came together both online and physically to support the family in this time of grief.

“Of course, nothing can make good the loss, but it will be some solace to the grieving family and it’s also a signal of the spirit of the community because it is in times like this when the spirit and the solidarity and the sense of empathy is tested.”

He added that the family members of the victim have been contacted by the consulate, and he hoped that the perpetrators of the crime are brought to justice by the police. Nath’s mortal remains will be flown back to India on July 27 with the help of the Consulate General of India in Toronto, as per reports in Canadian media.

Meanwhile, shocked community members held a candlelight vigil in Mississauga on Saturday where over 200 people gathered in Gurvinder Nath’s honour.