York Regional Police say a man wanted in connection with the December 2021 assault of Elnaz Hajtamiri has been arrested in Texas and extradited to Canada.
Investigators confirmed that 25-year-old Sukhpreet Singh of Mississauga was taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service on Aug. 19 with assistance from Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Austin Police Department.
Singh was extradited to York Region on Sept. 30 and has since been charged with aggravated assault and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence. He remains in custody.
Police had issued a Canada-wide warrant for Singh in 2023, identifying him as a suspect in the violent attack on Hajtamiri in an underground parking garage in Richmond Hill.
Dec. 2021 assault details
On Dec. 20, 2021, officers responded to reports of an assault near Yonge Street and Bantry Avenue. Police say Hajtamiri, then 37, was struck with a frying pan by multiple suspects before the attackers fled in a vehicle. She was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
In 2022, four suspects were charged in connection with the assault, including Hajtamiri’s ex-boyfriend, Mohamad Lilo, who was arrested by York Regional Police and the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and charged with attempted murder and attempted kidnapping. Three more suspects were arrested in 2023.
Singh’s arrest brings the total number of individuals charged in the Richmond Hill case to eight.
Hajtamiri abducted weeks later; remains missing
Just weeks after the Richmond Hill assault, Hajtamiri was abducted on Jan. 12, 2022, from a relative’s home in Wasaga Beach. Police say three suspects dressed in fake police gear forced her from the residence at gunpoint and fled in a white Lexus RX SUV. She has not been seen since.
The OPP and York Regional Police continue to lead the investigation into her disappearance. A $100,000 reward remains in place for information leading to her whereabouts.
The Hajtamiri case has led to multiple arrests in Canada and the United States. In March 2023, police arrested Krystal Lawrence of Brampton, charging her with kidnapping in connection with the Wasaga Beach abduction. Two months later, Adams Suleman Ankamah of Brampton was arrested and charged with kidnapping and firearms offences.
In August 2024, U.S. Marshals arrested Deshawn Davis, another suspect in the kidnapping, in California on an unrelated charge. Davis had been on Canada’s “Bolo” most-wanted list.
The missing woman’s family has repeatedly appealed for information, with her mother describing their ordeal as “living a desperate life” while waiting for answers.
York Regional Police and the OPP are urging anyone with information about Hajtamiri’s disappearance to come forward.
