Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York announced February 13, 2026, that Nikhil Gupta, an Indian national, has pleaded guilty to all three counts in a Second Superseding Indictment charging him with “murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit money laundering, in connection with his efforts to murder a U.S. citizen” in New York City.

According to a statement issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, Gupta entered his guilty plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn. He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero on May 29, 2026.

“Nikhil Gupta plotted to assassinate a U.S. citizen in New York City,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “He thought that from outside this country he could kill someone in it without consequence, simply for exercising their American right to free speech. But he was wrong, and he will face justice. Our message to all nefarious foreign actors should be clear: steer clear of the United States and our people.”

“Nikhil Gupta was a key participant in a murder-for-hire plot against a U.S. citizen, a murder that was prevented thanks to the actions of U.S. law enforcement,” said FBI Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky. “The U.S. citizen became a target of transnational repression solely for exercising their freedom of speech. The message from the FBI should be clear—no matter where you are located if you try to harm our citizens we will not stop until you are brought to justice.”

“It is often a slippery and dangerous slope from drug trafficking to deadly violence, as demonstrated by the murder-for-hire plot orchestrated by international narcotics and weapons trafficker Nikhil Gupta,” said DEA Administrator Terrance Cole. “This case is a stark reminder of the ruthless lengths criminals will go to in order to further their illegal enterprises. I commend the men and women of DEA’s New York Task Force Division for their outstanding investigative work successfully foiling Gupta’s assassination plot. Let there be no doubt: DEA remains steadfast in its mission to protect America. We will continue to leverage our superior investigative expertise and unmatched intelligence capabilities to dismantle the drug trafficking networks that threaten our safety and well-being of our communities.”

“At the direction and coordination of an Indian government employee, Nikhil Gupta plotted to assassinate a United States citizen on American soil, facilitating a foreign adversary’s unlawful effort to silence a vocal critic of the Indian government,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle, Jr. “The FBI will continue to aggressively defend the homeland against any foreign adversaries who target our citizens for exercising their constitutionally protected rights.”

According to allegations in the Second Superseding Indictment, related public court documents, and statements made in court, the plot dates back to 2023. Prosecutors allege that Gupta worked with “others in India” and elsewhere, including co-defendant Vikash Yadav, who was at “relevant times an Indian government employee,” to plan the assassination of an attorney and political activist identified in court filings as “the Victim” on U.S. soil.

“The Victim, who is a U.S. citizen of Indian origin, is a vocal critic of the Indian government and leads a U.S.-based organization that advocates for the secession of Punjab, a state in northern India that is home to a large population of Sikhs, an ethnoreligious minority group in India,” the statement added. “The Victim has publicly called for some or all of Punjab to secede from India and establish a Sikh sovereign state called Khalistan, and the Indian government has banned the Victim and his separatist organization from India.”

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