BURSTAs the number of extortion-related shootings climb in Surrey and other cities, operators of B.C.’s Extortion Task Force say they’ve taken conduct of 32 files from jurisdictions across the Lower Mainland since launch day four months ago.
Investigators are analyzing physical, digital and forensic evidence “to establish linkages and advance investigations towards enforcement into identified cluster groups,” a BC RCMP news release said Tuesday (Jan. 20).
The Task Force has more than 1,000 exhibits and hundreds of hours of CCTV footage being “meticulously analyzed to find every vital piece of evidence,” according to John Brewer, BC RCMP Assistant Commissioner.
“Extortion investigations are complex and investigators and Crown prosecutors must rely on lawfully obtained physical, digital and forensic evidence to put the pieces of the puzzles together and to prove the charges,” Brewer says.
“Please know that we are moving forward with each investigation to ensure that those who are responsible for these acts are held accountable,” he added.
Seven people have been criminally charged, the news release notes.
Task force partner Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is said to be investigating 111 foreign nationals who may be inadmissible for Immigration and Refugee Protection Act-related offences. By Tuesday (Jan. 20), nine of those individuals have been removed from Canada, according to BC RCMP.
There have been four extortion-related shootings in Surrey this past week. Almost daily, Surrey Police report shots fired at businesses and homes as the city deals with an ongoing extortion crisis.
According to the latest Surrey Police Service numbers, reported Monday (Jan. 19), there have been 34 reported extortions, seven extortion-related shots-fired incidents, and 21 extortion-related victims (16 repeat victims) in Surrey in 2026.
As new extortion-related files come in for initial response by police of jurisdiction, “each is assessed to determine whether it is connected to any of the ongoing, previously identified series under investigation by the Task Force,” BC RCMP say.
Investigators continue to liaise with and provide support to local police across the province. The Task Force reports obtaining close to 100 judicial authorizations and executed multiple search warrants across the Lower Mainland, Southeast District and in Alberta.
“Investigators have made arrests, conducted searches incidental to those arrests and obtained statements to lawfully secure perishable evidence.
“In total, because of Task Force investigative efforts to date, seven individuals have been criminally charged. Concurrently, municipal policing partners have secured charges in some of their respective investigations both through independent investigations and through collaborative efforts gathering evidence with the Task Force.”
BC Extortion Task Force’s lengthy four-month update statement is posted on rcmp.ca.