Eby seeks terror designation for India-based gang linked to extortion threats

David Eby, the premier of British Columbia, has stated that he would like Canada to declare an Indian gang a terrorist organization. The premier said Tuesday the Lawrence Bishnoi gang had been linked to extortions and other crimes against South Asian community members in B.C., Alberta and Ontario.
He stated that he would write to Prime Minister Mark Carney to request that the gang be designated a terrorist organization “to enable police to be able to use the necessary tools to investigate.” According to police, members of the South Asian community are being threatened with violence or death in exchange for cash, and the India-based gang has been linked to some of those threats. Get the day’s top stories from Montreal and surrounding communities, delivered to your inbox once a day.
Get the latest news from Montreal every day. Get the day’s top stories from Montreal and surrounding communities, delivered to your inbox once a day.
SIGN UP FOR DAILY MONTREAL NEWSLETTER
The email address JOIN US! BY PROVIDING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS, YOU HAVE READ AND AGREE TO GLOBAL NEWS’ TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY.
Eby claimed that a Mexican drug cartel was the target of similar federal action. Eby stated, “This is a serious step.” “We do not make this recommendation lightly, but this activity undermines public confidence in our democracy and the justice system,” The story goes on after the advertisement. Community members gathered in Surrey on the weekend to talk about the extortion problem and local police say there has been an upturn in complaints from people getting letters, phone calls and social media messages demanding money under threat of violence.
Last year, the RCMP said that Indian diplomats told the Indian government and high-ranking officials about Sikh separatists in Canada, then gave the information to the Bishnoi gang. In December 2023, Abbotsford, British Columbia police said they were looking into extortions that targeted wealthy South Asians and had connections to the Bishnoi gang. In 2023, the National Investigation Agency, India’s counterterrorism agency, reported that Lawrence Bishnoi runs his “terror-syndicate from jails in different states” in India and through a Canadian associate.