The B.C. government will join law enforcement leaders and Crime Stoppers for an announcement on actions to address extortion threats.
Surrey police said they are investigating 44 extortion cases against residents and business owners, including 27 that involved shootings.
The threats are primarily targeting members of the South Asian community.
On Monday, the City of Surrey announced a $250,000 reward for any information leading to convictions in these cases.
The fund will offer people with “key information” the ability to collect a reward if they are prepared to work with police to secure charges and convictions for those responsible for the crimes, the city said in a release.
In August, a car wash in Surrey was targeted with gunfire. The owner told Global News it came after recent extortion threats.
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Gunfire shattered the windows of the 1313 Car Wash on 84 Avenue near 128 Street. Lovepreet Singh, who has owned the business for about two and a half years, said he’d received a call from an unknown number demanding $50,000 in the days before the incident.
Then, in early September, Surrey police said they believed an early morning shooting in a residential neighbourhood was linked to “an ongoing extortion investigation.”
Police in the area have been investigating extortion targeting the South Asian business community, with some cases being linked to the India-based Lawrence Bishnoi gang.
Politicians, including Premier David Eby and federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, have urged Ottawa to designate the gang as a terrorist entity.
This story will be updated following the press release at 1 p.m. PT.
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