DRUG KINGPIN GETS 17 YEARS FOR KIDNAPPING

Men Were Abducted, Extorted To Settle $400,000 Drug Debt

A ruthless thug who kidnapped and extorted three men in an effort to
recover $400,000 in marijuana was handed one of the longest sentences
in B.C. history for kidnapping yesterday -- 17 years in prison.

Jethinder Singh "Roman" Narwal, 30, showed no emotion as B.C. Supreme
Court Justice Sunni Stromberg-Stein handed down the sentence, which was
highlighted by consecutive sentences for the three separate
kidnappings.

"It is important to denounce this kind of behaviour," Crown counsel
Joe Bellows said outside court.

The string of kidnappings began Jan. 17, 2005, when Narwal and an
associate nabbed Harpreet "Happy" Singh, the "middle man" in their
marijuana-export venture.

Narwal told a police officer in an "off-the-record" admission that he
suspected Singh had ripped him off.

Singh escaped his captors by diving through the drive-through window
of an A&W restaurant and calling 911.

Narwal was charged with Singh's kidnapping Jan. 17, but a judge
granted him bail a week later.

He joined others in the kidnappings and beatings of Khark Grewal on
April 26 and Harjit Toor between May 1 and May 6 -- both while on
strict bail conditions to keep the peace.

The Toor family put together a $160,000 ransom to secure Harjit's
release. Toor was beaten, burned with lit cigarettes and was
blindfolded throughout most of his ordeal.

Grewal escaped by jumping out of a moving vehicle and was rescued by
passing motorists as his captors tried to shove his head under their
van's wheels.

"A lot of credit is due to the police investigators," said Bellows,
who also praised the courage of the three victims who came forward
and had faith that police would protect them from the brazen gangsters.

Eleven men are scheduled to go on trial in three separate cases later
this year for the three kidnappings.

The judge discounted the glowing tributes to Narwal's character in
letters written to her from his family members and two Sikh priests.

"Obviously the authors of these letters have only seen one side of
the accused," she said, adding they may be deluding themselves.
"These are extremely serious offences."

While Stromberg-Stein noted it's not too late for Narwal to
rehabilitate himself, she chose to emphasize the sentencing
principles of denunciation and deterrence.

Defence lawyer Matthew Nathanson said Narwal has asked him to appeal.