An up and coming 33-year old Liberal Canadian MP who recently resigned to the surprise of many was reportedly being investigated by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) who followed his multi-million gambling activities at several casinos in the Canadian capital.
The closest casino frequented by Raj Grewal was located near Parliament Hill. Grewal resigned two weeks ago from his Brampton East seat. This was a surprise since he had recently been nominated to run for a second term and was a member of the powerful finance committee of the House of Commons.
The Globe and Mail reported that he spent millions in the last three years at several locations, including Casino du Lac-Leamy near Parliament in Ottawa.
The Prime Minister’s office issued a statement that Grewal had been dealing with a gambling problem.
He is also being investigated by the federal Ethics Commissioner for bringing an executive of the building company ZGemi Inc., to an event attended by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a recent trip to India. That same company allegedly paid Grewal a salary while he also served as an elected official.
Apparently, It was his high rolling gambling which repeatedly triggered a reporting law that requires casinos to disclose transactions of higher than $10,000 a day. This came to the attention of Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) which notified RCMP, which assigned the investigation to its national division.
RCMP does not comment on ongoing investigations, including the report that it recently requested parliamentary records on Grewal.
According to the newspaper the former MP and a girlfriend had purchased two condo suites in Toronto $1,295,575, secured with an HSBC Canada mortgage of $1,499,999 as well as other loans for a Land Rover, a Jeep Wrangler and a RAM truck.
Despite his resignation the Office of the Ethics Commission indicated that it will continue its investigation.
Meanwhile the RCMP is continuing its investigation into alleged money laundering, black-market banking and possible drug trafficking in British Columbia casinos. This involves high rollers from China who defy their country’s money regulations by “laundering” cash at B.C. casinos.
Last week prosecutors in Richmond provincial court held off on charges of money laundering and associated charges against Silver International Investments Ltd. and two Chinese nationals: Caixuan Qin and Jain Jun Zhu, delaying the trial that had been scheduled to begin. No specific reason was given for staying the prosecution.
RCMP spokesman Staff Sgt. Tania Vaughan said, “We have no further comment at this time.” She added, “The RCMP, in collaboration with its partners, remains committed to combating money laundering and financial crime.”
The Public Prosecution Service of Canada said the charges did not meet is test that there must be a reasonable prospect of achieving a conviction to go to trails.
The attorney for Silver International also offered no comments.
The Mounties allege they discovered an operation that laundered about $1.5 million daily, for a total of $500 million.
Money laundering, especially in British Columbia, has been a hot topic for more than three years. Earlier this year B.C. Attorney General David Eby commissioned a report by a retired Mounty investigator who issued a scathing report on how permeable B.C. casinos are to laundering, despite numerous warnings. The report also warned that mob money may have found its way into the real estate market, and very probably was responsible for the sky high land values in the province.
Upon learning of the charges being stayed, Eby told the Vancouver Sun that he was “incredibly disappointed” and said it was “urgent” to find out why.
Last year Postmedia obtained government documents through a freedom of information request that allege Silver International was the “laundromat” that loaned money to VIP Asian tourists, who would be handed large bags of $20 bills upon landing at the airport. This enabled them to evade China’s strict laws against taking money out of the country.
One of the defendants in the case, Caixuan Qin, is on the board of directors of Silver International.
The case was built against them by the RCMP by surveillance of cash drops at River Rock Casino and then to a location ten miles away operated by Silver. This “cash house” was linked to 40 different organizations that dealt in drugs.
The Mounties seized more than $2 million in cash and associated records in a raid on this house.
According to one description in the Sun: “They would put $100,000 into a hockey bag, show up at the casino, and give (the VIP gambler) $100,000 … the loaning out would go to Chinese offshore gamblers coming into Canada.”
