Another extortion-related shooting took place in Surrey Sunday leading to the arrest of three Indian men, including one 19-year-old, amid Surrey mayor Brenda Locke’s appeal to the federal government to declare a national state of emergency in Surrey over the rampant extortion incidents.
Surrey police officers responded to a shooting incident on Sunday and arrested Harjot Singh, 21, Taranveer Singh, 19, and Dayajeet Singh Billing, 21.All of them have been charged with one count of discharging a firearm into a place. No one was injured in the shooting, but police say a home near Crescent Road and 132 Street was damaged and firefighters had to extinguish a small fire by a fence on the property.“The investigation is ongoing and there may be additional Criminal Code charges coming in the weeks ahead,” said Surrey Police Service (SPS) spokesperson Staff Sgt Lindsey Houghton.
“All three have been remanded into custody.”It was not immediately known whether they were illegals in Canada, cops said. The Canada Border Services Agency was investigating their exact status. A group of protesters took to the street Monday, calling for more public safety in Surrey. Residents said even if the perpetrators are arrested, they are let out on bail. And that’s why many families do not report the cases and just pay the criminals.
The extortionist follows the same modus operandi: they target a businessman, mostly of South Asian origin, fire shots outside their house and make a video of it. Then they send the videos to the target and seek money, threatening that the next firing will be inside the house. Surrey mayor Brenda Locke recently called on the federal government to declare a national state of emergency as Surrey residents are living in constant fear. “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,” the mayor said in the last council meeting.
