Mayor Brenda Locke is urging the federal government to take full leadership and declare a national state of emergency, or invoke equivalent extraordinary measures, to tackle the extortion crisis affecting communities across Canada.
At Monday night’s council meeting, Mayor Locke presented a motion, unanimously supported by council, calling on the federal government to immediately make the declaration, which would give it additional temporary powers to tackle the extortion crisis, given that current efforts have not been enough.
“Surrey is facing a serious and growing crisis of organized extortion, intimidation and targeted shootings,” Mayor Locke said. “Residents and business owners are living in constant fear. Public safety is at risk, and the social and economic impact is real. The federal government needs to act now to give authorities the additional tools we need to keep our residents safe.”
Mayor Locke’s motion reiterated her call to appoint a Commissioner for Extortion Violence Against Canadians to oversee the implementation of key measures, including:
- Immediate deployment of additional RCMP, federal organized crime units, and intelligence resources to Surrey
- Federal RCMP leadership of a joint federal-provincial-municipal task force with authority to act rapidly on extortion-related violence
- Expedited removal of non-citizens charged or convicted of extortion, firearms offences, or participation in extortion-related criminal activity
- Review of legislative gaps and recommendations to strengthen police capacity for arresting, charging and prosecuting offenders
- Quarterly public reporting on the severity of extortion-related activity and progress in addressing the crisis
Other measures include expanding immediate detention and inadmissibility powers under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, ensuring coordinated financial investigations of extortion-related crimes, and allowing the public release of information that identifies individuals charged with or deported for extortion-related offences to increase public awareness and deterrence.
“Surrey is entering the third year of this crisis. Despite police and provincial efforts, these transnational crimes are not stopping, and we need a full-scale national effort,” Mayor Locke said. “We need to restore public safety, protect our community, and take organized crime off our streets.”
