Edmonton police chief backs province's call to label Bishnoi Gang 'terrorist'
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'Edmonton is not immune to the impacts of transnational crime. We agree with the Government of Alberta that this designation will provide the EPS and its law enforcement partners with enhanced powers and investigative tools that will help us continue to dismantle organized crime groups and criminal activity on our streets,' Laforce said in a statement to Postmedia on Monday.
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The alleged extortion ring operating in Edmonton, B.C. and around the country is a terrorist organization, Premier Danielle Smith and Public Safety and Emergency Services Minister Mike Ellis said Monday, calling on Ottawa to call the 'global and violent' group a terrorist organization.
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The leader of the northern India-based gang has been imprisoned in India for 11 years, but is still suspected of pulling the strings on a transnational criminal network responsible for violence, extortion, drug trafficking and targeted killings, including in Canada, the government statement said.
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'Its reach is global, and its intent is criminal and violent,' said the joint statement.
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Alberta Justice stands with B.C. Premier David Eby and other officials across Canada in calling for immediate federal action, the statement said, calling on the federal government to use every tool available to dismantle the network and keep Canadians safe, adding that gang activity knows no boundaries and respects no borders, and Alberta wants to send a clear message that it's not welcome here.
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'Formally designating the Bishnoi Gang as a terrorist entity will unlock critical powers, allowing provincial and municipal-level law enforcement agencies to access the necessary tools and resources needed to effectively disrupt operations and protect our people,' Smith said, adding that South Asian communities in Alberta have been disproportionately targeted and affected by the gang.
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Links to Bishnoi are suspected in the case of the June 18, 2023, murder of Surrey, B.C., Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
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Nijjar was shot and killed in his pickup truck as he left the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, B.C., touching off a wave of protests and rallies from local communities against diplomats from India.
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He was the president at the gurdwara where he was killed. Nijjar also campaigned for a separate Sikh homeland in India — also known as Khalistan — and organized unofficial referendums around the world about Punjabi independence.
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