Sri Lanka’s ‘Ava’ gang leader arrested in Canada on murder charges

Toronto Star- A man believed to be the head of a Sri Lankan motorcycle gang is facing extradition to France to face murder charges after being arrested in Toronto this spring, the Star has learned.

The extradition of Prasanna Nallalingam is being sought in connection with the alleged gang killing of Abiraman Balakirishnan and attempted murder of another man in September 2022 in France, Canada’s Department of Justice confirmed Wednesday.

According to an affidavit obtained by the Star, Nallalingam, 32, who also goes by the name Ajanthan Subramaniyam, is believed to be the leader of a group known as AAVA, an outlaw motorcycle club active in the northern province of Sri Lanka. The filings state the attack targeted a group known to be rivals of AAVA, the LC Boys. According to French media reports, the two groups were engaged in a multi-year conflict over control of La Courneuve, a commune located in the northern suburbs of Paris.

Concealing their faces and armed with “sabres, machetes and knives,” Nallalingam and five associates are alleged to have attacked two occupants of a vehicle in La Courneuve on Sept. 21, 2022. According to the filings, Nallalingam, 32, was not only allegedly involved in the attack on Balakirishnan and the second man, but “planned and instigated it.”

“The two victims were found in agony,” French court filings read; Balakirishnan died of his wounds, while the second man survived.

At the time of the attack, Nallalingam was wanted in Sri Lanka for the March 2021 killing of Sivakumaran Jeewarathna. According to court filings, he escaped the country not long after, sparking Interpol to issue an international arrest warrant.

Nallalingam was also already known to French authorities at the time – in 2019, court documents show he was sentenced to a six-month suspended prison sentence for “acts of violence,” and, in 2021, received a sentence of three years for his participation in an organized raid on a restaurant in Paris, reportedly carried out in retaliation for a prior attack on an AAVA member.

Nallalingam entered Canada from the United States in December 2022. According to the filings, he was able to do so by providing a fraudulent name at an unauthorized checkpoint on Roxham Road in Quebec. It is not clear how Nallalingam entered the U.S.

Nallalingam awaited a decision on that claim for the next year, during which French authorities joined Interpol in issuing a warrant for his arrest.

“Considering that (Nallalingam) is strongly suspected of having participated in acts of murder (and) attempted murder committed by an organized gang; That this information related to acts punishable by life imprisonment sentences; That these are acts of a particularly serious nature committed on a public highway; That there is a significant number of protagonists and that (Nallalingam) currently appears to be a fugitive abroad; that he is already being investigated by the Sri Lankan authorities for murder; In view of these elements, it appears necessary and responsible to issue an arrest warrant,” the French warrant reads.

It wasn’t until May of this year that Nallalingam was arrested by the Canada Border Services Agency, assisted by the Toronto Police Service, after failing to appear for a refugee admissibility hearing. Upon taking him into custody, authorities ran the fingerprints provided in his claim against the set on file with Interpol — it was a match.

When reached for comment, Allan Lobel, legal counsel for Nallalingam, declined to comment on the proceedings.

Nallalingam is currently in custody awaiting a decision on the proposed extradition.

His hearing is scheduled for May 2025.