The beginning of 2026 has seen a rise in the number of extortion-related cases in British Columbia. Back in 2025, the city of Surrey alone had 132 attempted blackmail cases. Out of those reported incidents, 49 of them resulted in shootings. In the first month of 2026, Surrey alone was impacted by 35 extortion cases, and Abbotsford has seen 38 reported extortion-related threats since November of 2023.
This extortion crisis has been an ongoing issue in B.C. since Nov. 2023, and these threats are primarily targeting South Asian-owned businesses and individuals through social media apps like WhatsApp.
The cases have been increasing across Canada, in places such as Edmonton and Brampton. However, they are repeatedly being reported in cities such as Surrey, Delta, and Abbotsford.
Over the past few years, extortion threats have been sent through different mediums such as letters, phone calls, text messages, social media, or from anonymous figures; all demanding money. The CBC has reported that these violent escalations have been linked to India by investigators.
“The India-based Bishnoi gang has claimed responsibility for some Canadian shootings on social media, and police have said there is evidence connecting the Bishnoi gang to Indian government agents.”
Galib Bhayani, former chief superintendent of RCMP Metro Vancouver Operations and criminology instructor at Kwantlen Polytechnic University has described how the tense relations between India and Canada have led to turmoil which have resulted in extortion-related occurrences in recent years.
“These [extortion attempts] are happening from India … Our relationship with India in terms of information sharing is not good. At other levels, it’s not good as well.”
Extortion activity has not been limited to everyday individuals, but South Asian stars as well — comedian Kapil Sharma and singer AP Dhillon living in the lower mainland have been affected as well.
Leaders in B.C. have provided conflicting stances on the crisis. In Jan. 2026, the RCMP’s Assistant Commissioner, John Brewer, claimed that the extortion situation is not a crisis.
“There’s not a crisis … This is a threat to public safety, absolutely, and I take it very seriously.”
B.C.’s Premier, David Eby, has criticized the statement made by Brewer, and expects him to take this situation seriously.
“If Mr. Brewer does not feel that urgency, does not feel this is a crisis, perhaps he’s not the right person to head up this task force. The reason we established this task force … was to respond to a crisis.”
Since Eby’s statement, Brewer has apologized for not initially deeming the extortion situation a crisis.
“Our efforts have never been limited because of a term. Extortions remain one of our highest priorities.”
After Eby and Brewer’s respective statements, B.C.’s Ministry of Public Safety revealed that it is funding $600,000 in order to expand the province’s forensic firearms lab. According to Chek News, the funding will be used to increase the lab’s ability to tackle cases relating to gun violence in order to deliver forensic results more proficiently.
As extortion cases continue to surge at an alarming rate, Surrey’s Mayor Brenda Locke is calling for more resources and is imploring for Ottawa to address this issue seriously at a national level.
The province currently has an Extortion Task Force which was established in Sept. 2025, and it includes over 40 police representatives from municipal to federal such as the B.C. RCMP, Surrey Police Services, Delta Police, Abbotsford Police, etc. Nina Krieger, minister of public safety and solicitor general, gave a clear statement concerning the objective of the task force.
“The B.C. Extortion Task Force sends a clear and firm message: if you choose to inflict harm on our communities, we will find you and we will hold you accountable.”
Last September, the Abbotsford Police Department (APD) launched Operation Community Shield, a dedicated task force within the APD to respond to the threats.
The APD have put up a page on their website detailing what extortion is, how they are dealing with its impact on the community, and how to report any extortion-related activity. The police department is urging citizens to be aware of this issue, and to not hesitate to report cases of extortion.
