- CBSA said it removed 111 people and issued 188 removal orders in a nationwide extortion crackdown.
- The enforcement began in August 2025 and expanded into the Greater Toronto Area in November 2025.
- Canada tied the campaign to 20,000 removals annually under its Border Plan and added $30.4 million in funding.
The Canada Border Services Agency said it removed 111 people from Canada and issued 188 removal orders as of September 3, 2026, in a nationwide extortion crackdown. The orders covered various inadmissibility grounds.
The campaign targets foreign nationals suspected of links to extortion, organized crime and other serious grounds under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. The agency published the figures in a news release on September 14, 2026.
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The enforcement work began in the Pacific and Prairie regions in August 2025. It expanded into the Greater Toronto Area in November 2025.
The figures measure two different stages of enforcement. An order does not necessarily mean that the person has already left Canada.
CBSA President Erin O’Gorman credited investigations and cooperation with police and other enforcement bodies. She said the results showed a sustained effort against people considered threats to Canadian communities.
“The removal of more than 100 individuals linked to extortion activities reflects CBSA's sustained efforts to identify, investigate and take action against those who pose a threat to our communities. These results also demonstrate the impact of strong collaboration with law enforcement partners across Canada and our shared commitment to combatting organized crime.”
Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said the operation was intended to disrupt criminal activity and strengthen public safety.
“Extortion and organized crime threaten the safety of our communities. The Government of Canada is committed to disrupting these activities through strong collaboration with law enforcement partners and decisive enforcement action. By identifying and removing inadmissible individuals involved in criminal activity, we are strengthening public safety.”
The western regions recorded more completed removals than the Toronto area
The agency’s breakdown showed different totals for orders issued and removals completed in each area:
| Region | Removal orders | Removals |
|---|---|---|
| Pacific Region | 91 | 58 |
| Prairie Region | 47 | 30 |
| Greater Toronto Area | 50 | 23 |
The Pacific figures were the highest for both measures. The Toronto-area operation recorded 50 orders and 23 removals.
An immigration finding is not the same as an extortion conviction
The cases rest on inadmissibility findings under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, commonly known as IRPA. The grounds cited by the agency include criminality, serious criminality and organized crime.
Those immigration findings do not establish that every person associated with the campaign was convicted in Canada of extortion. The enforcement action concerns whether a foreign national meets the statutory requirements to remain in Canada.
The agency said investigators drew on law-enforcement partners, other government agencies, CBSA-led investigations and public reporting. It described the initiative as a way to identify foreign nationals connected to extortion networks and other organized-crime activity.
The Immigration and Refugee Board may also make inadmissibility findings in individual cases. The legal basis can differ from one person to another.
The named cases involved different immigration findings and allegations
Four people identified in the enforcement context were Palwinder Singh, Jasmer Singh, Amitoz Bajwa and Sahibjot Singh. The material links their cases to the wider extortion and organized-crime enforcement effort, but does not establish that they were all removed in one action.
Palwinder Singh was described as linked to an extortion-related shooting in the fall of 2025. The Immigration and Refugee Board found him inadmissible for membership in a criminal organization linked to extortion-related violence.
Jasmer Singh had been convicted in Canada of forcible confinement. His immigration finding involved serious criminality.
The agency also identified Amitoz Bajwa and Sahibjot Singh as removed and linked their cases to extortion-related and organized-crime activity. Those descriptions concern the enforcement context and do not, by themselves, show convictions for extortion in Canada.
The distinction is central to the case records. A criminal conviction and an immigration inadmissibility finding are separate legal outcomes, even when the underlying conduct overlaps.
The campaign draws on a wider plan to increase removals
A separate account put the agency’s removal pace at about 400 inadmissible individuals per week. It also cited $30.4 million from Canada’s Border Plan to increase capacity.
That funding was tied to a goal of completing 20,000 removals annually in the last fiscal year and in 2026–2027. The capacity figure covers removal work more broadly, rather than serving as a separate count for the extortion campaign.
The agency’s western operation began in August 2025 before moving into Ontario in November 2025. Its latest reported figures were measured on September 3, 2026.
This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific case.
