Peel Region police investigate 29 extortion cases, make five arrests – Winnipeg Free Press

Mississauga, Ont. – More than two dozen cases of extortion targeting mostly South Asian businesses are being investigated in west Toronto, Peel Region police said Wednesday, citing what officials described as a troubling trend.

The force, whose jurisdiction includes Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon, recently arrested and charged five people in connection with the extortion case and said it is investigating at least 29 others.

Police chief Nishan Durayappa told a press conference: “It is our responsibility to respond to this trend and stop it.”

Police said they are still investigating the motive behind the extortion case.

“There's a complex ecosystem of people involved in this,” Durayappa said. “But it's still early in the investigation to say it's organized crime, and we're trying to examine all the evidence to see.”

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said the alleged extortion threats had a chilling effect on many in his community.

“I can't tell you how hard it was to get phone calls in the fall from terrified families, scared business owners (and) utter desperation and panic,” Brown said at Wednesday's news conference.

“It scared the South Asian community… So today is a day of relief. We have started the process of solving this problem.”

Brown said the latest arrests send a clear message that such alleged extortion will not be tolerated.

Sup. Shelley Thompson, who heads the threat investigation task force, said police are currently investigating 29 alleged extortion threats since November 2023 targeting businesses such as restaurants, bakeries, trucking companies, car dealerships and jewelry stores.

Victims are typically contacted through social media platforms or phone calls and demands payments of varying amounts in Canadian or Indian currency with threats of violence, he said.

“Nine of the incidents involved multiple gunshots,” he said. “In most of the incidents the premises were vacated and we have no injuries at this time.”

Peel police are in contact with police in Alberta, British Columbia and the U.S. who have seen the alleged extortion trend, Thompson said. The RCMP and other federal agencies are also involved in the investigation.

He said investigators are also working with Indian law enforcement agencies, although the investigation has so far shown no connection between Peel and the alleged crimes in India.