Lawyers have become the latest target of extortion, according to the Law Society of British Columbia.The revelation comes amid a spate of potentially foreign-influenced incidents across the province, mainly in Surrey.."The Law Society of BC is aware of recent incidents in which lawyers have been threatened with serious physical harm unless they provided substantial sums of money," the group wrote in a statement. If you are threatened in this manner, immediately contact the police in your jurisdiction."They went on to note that the police "may involve the new Extortion Task Force," and that, "the Canada Border Services Agency has also recently joined the task force to address the rise in extortion threats and violence against businesses.".Two arrested in Lower Mainland extortion probe targeting South Asian businesses .BC Conservative MLA and Attorney General Critic Steve Kooner called on Premier David Eby and Attorney General Niki Sharma to "answer for this mess.""I am deeply concerned that violent criminal networks are now targeting the very professionals who uphold our justice system," he said. "When lawyers — officers of the court — are being told to pay large sums or face physical harm, it shows how badly the NDP has lost control of public safety."Kooner urged Eby and Sharma to join him in pushing the federal government to designate extortion as a terrorism offence.."This crisis has already harmed business owners, homeowners, families, and now legal professionals," Kooner added. "As attorney general critic, I will continue pushing for real accountability and real solutions — not the NDP's pattern of delay, denial, and damage control."In September, the government took action, launching the aforementioned task force. It is comprised of 40 people from various law enforcement agencies.The situation is most dire in Surrey, where police are investigating 45 extortion threats and 27 related shootings — and that's just from this year..UPDATED: Indian gang designated terrorist entity in Canada.A number of incidents have been linked to the infamous Lawrence Bishnoi Gang of India, whose members have taken to terrorizing Canadian streets. The premier, and others, called on Ottawa to designate the group a terrorist organization, and on September 29, it was.
