Parliamentary Committee Notes: Foreign Police Stations in Canada
Proposed Response:
- The Government of Canada takes threats to the security of Canadians and individuals living in Canada very seriously. Its primary focus is the safety and protection of the public at all times.
- The RCMP, along with the broader Canadian law enforcement community, has a clear role to play in protecting Canada and Canadians from transnational repression.
- The RCMP is actively investigating reports of illegal activity, including criminal offences, in relation to the allegations of foreign police stations, which are allegedly affiliated with the People’s Republic of China and operating in Canada.
- As the RCMP continues to investigate this matter, no further information will be provided at this time.
- Anyone who feels threatened online or in person should report these incidents to their local police or should call 911. Individuals may also contact the RCMP National Security Information Network by phone at 1-800-420-5805 or by email at RCMP.NSIN-RSIN.GRC@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.
If pressed:
- The Chinese community as a whole is not being targeted for investigation. Consistent with our mandate, the RCMP is investigating illegal activities in Canada.
- It is possible for officials from foreign law enforcement agencies to pursue criminal investigations in Canada, however their activities are guided by the Protocol on Foreign Criminal Investigators which establishes parameters for the conduct of foreign criminal investigations in Canada.
- Foreign threats and intimidation to individuals in Canada by foreign investigators would violate existing international agreements.
- The RCMP is part of Canada's security and intelligence community and has strong relationships with law enforcement agencies around the world; and, in particular, works closely with our Five Eyes partners to respond to and maintain situational awareness of all threats to national security.
Background:
In September 2022, the non-governmental organization Safeguard Defenders released a report entitled “110 Overseas – Chinese Transnational Policing Gone Wild” which alleged that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) established 54 overseas police stations (OPS) in 30 different countries, including in Canada. A follow-on report entitled “Patrol and Persuade” published in December 2022 claimed that 102 OPS were present in 53 countries.
Furthermore, in September and October 2022, several media outlets, reported on the actions of the Chinese Fuzhou Public Security Bureau’s (PSB) offices, which are located across five continents, including three in the Greater Toronto Area. These offices purport to assist Chinese nationals in Canada on a variety of fronts, from renewing driver’s licenses, to reporting incidents to local police. Media reports claim that these offices are being used as “clandestine hubs” for the Chinese state to target and compel alleged criminals to return to China to face justice.
On October 27, 2022, the RCMP issued a media statement informing the public that it is investigating reports of criminal activity in relation to the so-called "police stations” alleged to be operating on behalf of the PRC in the Greater Toronto Area. As the RCMP is actively investigating this, it cannot comment further. Furthermore, on March 9, 2023, media outlets reported that the RCMP confirmed that two Montreal organizations, the Service à la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal, in Montreal's Chinatown, and the Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud, in Brossard, on the South Shore of Montreal, are being investigated as alleged Chinese police stations.
On April 18, 2023, several media outlets reported that the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested Lu Jianwang and Chen Jinping, two New York residents, on charges of conspiring to act as agents of China's government without informing U.S. authorities and obstruction of justice for allegedly operating a “secret police station” in Manhattan. In an affidavit published online, it is indicated that they were leaders of a nonprofit association for Fujanese people who, beginning in or around January 2022 , conspired to act as agents of the PRC without prior notification to the Attorney General of the United States, as required by law. The affidavit also indicates that photographs on Lu Jianwang’s device depict association presidents from various countries, including Canada.
On March 6, 2024, two Chinese community organizations – the Service à la Famille chinoise du Grand Montréal and the Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive Sud – filed a claim against the RCMP for defamation asking for over 4.9 million dollars in financial, moral and punitive damages. The claim is a direct response to a statement made by the RCMP in March 2023, which confirmed that both organizations were being investigated because of their potential operation as "police stations" for the PRC.
It is important to note that the Chinese government and Chinese law enforcement are permitted to pursue criminal investigations in Canada, but their activities are guided by the Protocol on foreign criminal investigators in Canada. This Protocol sets out Canada’s notification and approval requirements for regulating the entry and monitoring of foreign criminal investigators pursuing foreign criminal investigations in Canada. Should the Chinese state be using PSB offices to threaten or intimidate Chinese nationals, they would be circumventing existing international agreements.