Inside man or patsy? Crown, defence pitch narratives at trial of man accused in Pearson gold heist

Parmpal Sidhu arrives for his trial in Brampton, Ontario on Monday Oct. 5, 2026. Sidhu is charged with theft over $5,000 and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence in the 2023 heist that took place at Toronto’s Pearson airport. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

Was a then-Air Canada employee an inside man who helped carry out one of the biggest gold heists in Canadian history, or a scapegoat exploited by a longtime friend and left to shoulder the blame?

Those were the two competing scenarios presented to a Brampton, Ont., court today as prosecutors and defence lawyers made their closing submissions in the trial of Parmpal Sidhu.

Sidhu has pleaded not guilty to theft over $5,000 and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence in connection with the April 2023 heist at Toronto’s Pearson airport.

Court has heard Sidhu’s profile was used to print a doctored air waybill that allowed another man to pick up more than $22 million in gold and currency, but that it wasn’t uncommon for employees to use someone else’s profile on shared computers.

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Prosecutors allege Sidhu was the one who printed the fraudulent waybill, and argue that when looking at the totality of the evidence, the only reasonable inference is that he knowingly participated in the heist.

The defence, meanwhile, argues the evidence points to another narrative: that Sidhu was taken advantage of by his then-colleague and friend of roughly two decades, Simran Preet Panesar, who they allege actually orchestrated the heist from the inside.

Panesar resigned in the months that followed the heist and left Canada with his family after being interviewed by police, the trial has heard. He has never returned and a Canada-wide warrant has been issued for his arrest.

One of the Crown’s key witnesses in the case was Arsalan Chaudhary, who is considered one of the architects of the plan.

Chaudhary was arrested earlier in the year as he flew back from Dubai and has since pleaded guilty to theft over $5,000. He was sentenced to four years in prison and given 40 years to pay back $22 million in restitution.

On the stand last month, Chaudhary testified that he’d planned the heist with Panesar and ended up taking 30 per cent of the boxes full of gold bars. He then melted some of the gold and sold it for cash before fleeing to Pakistan, he said.

Chaudhary said he communicated with Sidhu on the day of the theft but couldn’t remember what he said.

He told the court he let Sidhu know the truck and driver were ready on the day of the heist and Sidhu replied, “OK.”

But as his testimony continued, Chaudhary mostly said he did not remember details of conversations he’d mentioned in previous court statements — including one from July when he said he spoke to Sidhu on the phone three times on the day of the heist.

When asked about his previous statement that he’d discussed the logistics of the plan with Sidhu, Chaudhary said he couldn’t remember doing so.

He attributed his memory lapses to post-traumatic stress disorder linked to his alleged abduction in Pakistan.

The case is being heard by a judge alone and a ruling is expected in late January 2027.

In the leadup to the trial, prosecutors dropped the charges against two other men accused in the case: Ali Raza and Amit Jalota.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 2, 2026.

Paola Loriggio, The Canadian Press