Surrey Council Demands Federal Action on Business Extortion

SURREY, BC — Surrey City Council passed a unanimous emergency resolution calling on the Government of Canada and the Province of British Columbia to deploy dedicated anti-extortion strike forces to protect South Asian business owners and families targeted by transnational extortion rings.

Unanimous Multi-Party Council Action

Mayor Brenda Locke, alongside Councillors Harry Bains, Rob Stutt, Doug Elford, Linda Annis, Mike Bose, Gordon Hepner, Mandeep Nagra, and Pardeep Kooner, stood together in the council chamber to demand federal criminal code reforms and harsher mandatory minimum sentences for firearms offenses and extortion coercion.

Public Safety Committee Chair Rob Stutt highlighted that local law enforcement agencies require coordinated federal intelligence sharing and border interdiction resources to trace overseas financial coercion schemes.

Business Community Testimonials and Municipal Support

The Surrey Board of Trade and local merchant associations described the severe emotional and financial toll inflicted on neighborhood small businesses in Newton and Payal Business Centre.

Council authorized the creation of a municipal Business Safety Action Hotline to connect targeted business owners directly with support services.

Federal-Provincial Response Timeline

The Minister of Public Safety confirmed that federal intelligence agencies have established an integrated anti-extortion coordination hub in the Lower Mainland.