Who is Darshan Singh Sahsi? Indian-origin businessman shot dead outside home in Canada

Indian-origin textile tycoon gunned down outside home in Canada's Abbotsford

A prominent Indian-origin businessman, Darshan Singh Sahsi, was shot dead outside his home in Abbotsford, British Columbia, on Monday morning, police confirmed. The fatal incident occurred in the 31300-block of Ridgeview Drive, Canada.

According to reports from CBC News, Sahsi’s son, Arpan, identified the 68-year-old victim as the president of Canam International, a major clothing recycling company. The tragic shooting, caught on a home security camera obtained by Postmedia, showed Sahsi getting into a dark truck when a gunman emerged from another vehicle, ran across the street, and opened fire.

Who was Darshan Singh Sahsi?

Sahsi, a self-made entrepreneur originally from Rajgarh village near Doraha in Ludhiana, Punjab, moved to Canada in 1991. Starting with a small team, he built Canam International into one of the world’s largest clothing recyclers, headquartered in Maple Ridge, British Columbia.

According to Satnam Singh Chahal, executive director of the North American Punjabi Association (NAPA), Sahsi was a respected figure in the Indo-Canadian community. “His enterprise not only provided employment to many members of the local Punjabi community but also contributed significantly to the region’s recycling and sustainability efforts,” Chahal said in a statement on X.

Chahal also revealed that Sahsi maintained close business ties to Punjab and Gujarat, where he supported multiple charitable causes.

Details of the shooting

The Abbotsford Police Department said officers responded to reports of gunfire around 9:22 a.m. and found a 68-year-old man inside a parked vehicle suffering from life-threatening injuries. Despite emergency medical efforts, he was pronounced dead at the scene.

“The incident was confined to a single parked vehicle on the roadway,” police said. The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) has since taken over the case.

Paul Walker, spokesperson for the Abbotsford Police, confirmed that investigators believe the killing was a targeted attack, but said it was “too early to determine” whether it was connected to a series of extortion attempts targeting members of the South Asian business community in British Columbia.

No extortion threats received

Sahsi’s son, Arpan, said the family had received no threats before the attack. “Of course we’re devastated because it does not make sense to us,” he said. “There were no threats, there was no blackmail, there was no extortion,” CBC News quoted him as saying.

Arpan described his father as a generous man who often went out of his way to help others. “I usually went to work with him every day, so I was supposed to be in that truck today,” he added.