Canada’s law enforcement agencies launch task force to tackle menace of extortions

Toronto: The province of British Columbia along with local law enforcement have launched a task force to focus on the threat of extortions, which have menaced the Indo-Canadian community in recent times.

Kap’s Cafe in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada which was fired at by unknown persons in July and August this year. (Credit: Sameer Kaushal/NewsDerby)

The formation of the specialised task force to strengthen investigations into the extortion threats was announced in Surrey on Wednesday by the province’s Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Nina Krieger. “This comprehensive approach will expand cross-jurisdictional reach, supporting co-ordinated investigations to bring criminals threatening and perpetrating violence in our communities to justice,” she said.

The extortion task force will consist of 40 members drawn from various policing agencies, including the British Columbia detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Abbotsford Police Department, Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit – BC or CFSEU-BC, Delta Police Department, Metro Vancouver Transit Police, Surrey Police Service and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), a provincial release stated. It will receive support from the Federal RCMP National Co-ordination and Support Team or NCST, which offers co-ordination and information sharing on extortion cases with law-enforcement agencies in affected provinces including BC, Alberta and Ontario.

John Brewer, Assistant Commissioner of the BC RCMP said, “This dedicated and expanded team brings in additional resources, intelligence and tactical skills from multiple law-enforcement agencies, with the common goals of protecting our communities from these extortions, while pursuing and holding those responsible for the violence, intimidation and fear accountable.”

The announcement came a day after police announced the arrest of a third person in connection with extortion-related shooting at a residence in Brampton in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). That incident occurred on July 10 and 11 and the suspect, 26-year-old Gurdeep Shergill, was taken into custody in BC by investigators from the Peel Regional Police (PRP) on September 12. Shergill, a resident of Delta in BC was charged with discharging a firearm with intent and extortion.

Earlier, Husandeep Singh, a 20-year-old from Mississauga, and Gurpreet Singh, a 23-year-old man of no fixed address, were arrested and charged in this connection.

Extortions have become rife in BC. A newly-opened cafe opened by Indian celebrity Kapil Sharma in Surrey, was shot at in an apparent extortion attempt. On June 11, businessman Satwinder Sharma was shot dead in neighbouring Abbotsford.

Meanwhile, Satish Kumar, president of the Lakshmi Narayan Mandir in Surrey, has experienced his businesses being targeted multiple times this year. Kumar told the outlet Vancouver Sun in July, “My life is on the line. My family’s life is on the line.” In December 2023, the residence where his son and family live in was fired upon.