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A Surrey, B.C., father said his family is still shaken three weeks after members of the provincial extortion task force staged a daytime raid on their home while carrying out a search warrant related to a man living in their basement suite.
Sameer Arora said on Oct. 24 a full tactical squad of approximately 25 individuals blocked his street with police cars, as officers with weapons drawn and police dogs in tow descended on his home without warning, bashing down the property’s front gate and basement door.
“They would have broken down the front door as well if my children hadn’t been home,” Arora said.
The subject of the search warrant, an approximately 21-year-old man, wasn’t home at the time. Arora said an officer told him the young man was a suspect in an extortion and firearms investigation.
“Police said when they left that you and your family are safe,” said Arora.
“But the suspect was back on the property the same day and night. He sent a message over my phone saying, ‘I’m innocent, I’m not involved in these activities’…. He said it was a mistake from the police side.”
Surrey is ground zero in an ongoing extortion crisis that has gripped parts of B.C.’s Lower Mainland for two years now.
The Surrey Police Service says 95 extortion incidents have been reported to it this year alone, as of Nov. 14, at least 43 of which have had related shots fired. That’s up from 20 files in all of 2024.
7 individuals charged
On Thursday night, CBC News hosted a town hall in Surrey that brought together politicians, law enforcement and community members to discuss the problem. Arora attended carrying a large sign in hopes of bringing attention to his concerns as an indirect victim of the violence.
According to task force officials, seven individuals have been arrested and charged with extortion-related offences in B.C., with more charges pending.
Last week, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announced its work within the task force — including in the execution of search warrants — had led to the removal of three individuals from Canada and had sparked immigration investigations into 78 foreign nationals “who may be inadmissible to the country.”
CBSA has declined to say why the three individuals were removed and where they were removed from or moved to. It has also refused to name them. None of the three were charged with any criminal offences, according to B.C. RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Vanessa Munn.
As for the 78 individuals under investigation, RCMP Assistant Commissioner John Brewer told CBC News that an “inordinate” number are foreign students.
The former director of the National Security Working Group at the University of Ottawa said, speaking generally, that kicking people out of the country for reasons of admissibility criteria is more expeditious than a long investigation to prove criminality.
“It could be because they had already overstayed [their visa], right?” said Wade Deisman, a criminologist and associate dean of the faculty of social sciences at the University of the Fraser Valley.
“Or something had happened that gave sufficient probable cause to believe that they were inadmissible to Canada because they had some kind of affiliation with the terrorist organization.”
Deisman said the problem with removal is that bad actors might see it as a free pass.
“I think we need to be really frank about that. If the aim is deterrence through prosecution and punishment every time you simply just deport somebody, you’ve kind of said you can come here and do whatever you want with impunity and all we’re gonna do is kick you out of the country if we can catch you.”
Last week, Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke made a request for 150 extra police officers in her city, amid a wave of extortion threats aimed at residents. While the request has received general support from both the province and the federal government, Wade Deisman, a criminologist at the University of the Fraser Valley, questions how realistic it is given a lack of policing staff across the country. He also says that the community has a role to play in helping solve extortion cases.
Arora said he doesn’t know if his former tenant is facing removal or charges.
At his request, and with two police officers in attendance, the tenant and his family moved out of the basement suite on Nov. 2.
Although thankful for the police support, Arora said his family still worries about possible retribution.
“We don’t know if he’s a criminal or just a suspect,” said Arora. “I was able to kick that person out from my property but we are still living in fear. We are not feeling safe at all.”
CBC News reached out to the RCMP to confirm the details of Arora’s story.
In an emailed statement, Munn wrote, “There have been multiple search warrants executed in relation to ongoing extortion related investigations. With that said, we are not in a position to provide any specific details due to the ongoing and sensitive nature these investigations.”
“Generally speaking, for privacy reasons police can not share information regarding a person/ suspect that has not been criminally charged,” she wrote.
