Vancouver Rundown Friday January 23, 2026

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke is calling on the federal government to appoint an ‘extortion czar’ do deal with her city’s rapid increase in shootings. She says there’s a need for a full-scale national initiative to stop the violence. The call comes as Surrey and other communities continue to deal with an escalation in extortion cases aimed at the South Asian business community and linked to organized crime. Locke says the system is broader than just policing - any mandate should examine weak links in Canada’s criminal, immigration and citizenship systems.