British Columbia Cracks Down on Suspected Casino Money Laundering Scheme

The British Columbia government is seeking a court order to forfeit CAD880,000 ($647,000) deposited as a bond with the Canada Border Services Agency by a man the government alleges was a multimillionaire leader of a criminal gang that ran illegal gaming houses and laundered money through casinos. The suspect, T.L., reportedly has ties to Chinese organized crime and has been the subject of international criminal investigations.

This Is Not the Suspect’s First Brush with the Law

A recent CBC report revealed a civil claim filed this week in B.C. Supreme Court, stating the $880,000 bond was paid by the suspect’s spouse after T.L. got apprehended by US Border Patrol and handed over to Canadian authorities in 2019 for crossing the US-Canada border illegally. Subsequent investigation revealed that T.L.- who described himself as self-employed- was wanted by China for organized crime.

Court records reveal some of the documents filed by B.C.’s Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, showing that T.L. made large cash transactions through local casinos. In July 2017 alone, T.L. allegedly paid CAD250,000 ($184,000) for casino chips and redeemed CAD610,000 ($449,000). The suspect has a long history of casino-related incidents and suspicious transactions.

The lawsuit alleges that the bond money is the proceeds of money laundering. T.L. reportedly told investigators he moved $12 million from Macau and Hong Kong and had another $100 million sitting in China. The B.C. director of civil forfeiture considered that the suspect’s financial transactions in casinos in British Columbia demonstrated money laundering.

B.C. Intensifies Its Efforts Against Gambling-Related Crime

T.L.’s legal issues also reach farther than Canadian borders. He was arrested in 2019 after running from US border officers and then walking back into Canada on foot. He served some jail time, but authorities later released him when the CBSA paid his bond. T.L. stated he had accumulated his wealth in Macau’s junket industry, providing loans and guarantees for high-rolling gamblers and collecting commissions on repayments.

The current legal report relies on the conclusions of an independent 2018 report on money laundering that pegged B.C. casinos as a global laundering destination for the proceeds of organized crime, mainly from Asia. Chinese officials notified Canadian investigators that T.L. was convicted in China of several criminal offenses, including extortion and conspiracy, and was the subject of an Interpol red notice. 

This case highlights the growing focus on combating money laundering and gambling-related crime in British Columbia. Recently, the B.C. Securities Commission also launched a probe into a cryptocurrency platform, ezBtc, alleging it had diverted about CAD13 million ($9.56 million) of its customers’ assets toward gambling. However, B.C. still faces significant challenges in curbing the laundering of illicit funds through its casinos and the broader financial system.