Triad boss loses another bid to stay in Canada
The leader of a Macau Triad has lost his latest bid to remain in Canada.
Tong Sang Lai, who’s also known as Lai Tong Sang, has been fighting to stay in B.C. since 2011 when government officials began the process to deport him because of his criminal ties.
In August 2013, an Immigration and Refugee Board member found there was plenty of evidence that Lai was a leader of the Shui Fong Triad and therefore inadmissible to Canada.
Lai then appealed the IRB ruling to the Federal Court of Canada, which concluded last March that “the record before the Immigration Division shows abundant evidence that Triads in Macau were engaged in a number of activities that any civilized country would find to be illegal and indictable; including cold-blooded murder in public, extortion, assault, and more.”
Lai then took his case to the Federal Court of Appeal, which upheld the earlier rulings in a decision made Jan. 27 and released Wednesday.
The appeal court decision quoted from the earlier ruling laying out Lai’s criminal links and said: “We agree, and find the judge’s conclusion to be consistent with the prior jurisprudence of this court.”
Lai’s lawyer Peter Chapman said Wednesday that he couldn’t comment on the case or whether his client plans to seek leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.
In fact Chapman would not even say if Lai remains in Canada.
Lai, now 60, came to Canada on a permanent resident visa on Oct. 20, 1996 with his wife and children arriving shortly afterwards.
Within a year, his Vancouver house had been targeted in a drive-by shooting and politicians were asking how a notorious gangster managed to get a visa to live in Canada.
Immigration officials explained that a mistake was made at the time as no background check was done when Lai applied through the Canadian consulate in L.A.
The officials began to collect evidence that could be used to remove Lai from Canada.
The deportation hearing finally took place in February 2013 with sensational evidence from police wiretaps about a $1 million contract on Lai’s head and a Macau gang war that had spilled over into Vancouver.
A senior Mountie testified that the recorded calls proved Lai was a high-ranking Triad leader and that a triad rival known as Chipped Tooth Koi was hunting for him.
Tong Sang Lai, who’s also known as Lai Tong Sang, has been fighting to stay in B.C. since 2011 when government officials began the process to deport him because of his criminal ties.
In August 2013, an Immigration and Refugee Board member found there was plenty of evidence that Lai was a leader of the Shui Fong Triad and therefore inadmissible to Canada.
Lai then appealed the IRB ruling to the Federal Court of Canada, which concluded last March that “the record before the Immigration Division shows abundant evidence that Triads in Macau were engaged in a number of activities that any civilized country would find to be illegal and indictable; including cold-blooded murder in public, extortion, assault, and more.”
Lai then took his case to the Federal Court of Appeal, which upheld the earlier rulings in a decision made Jan. 27 and released Wednesday.
The appeal court decision quoted from the earlier ruling laying out Lai’s criminal links and said: “We agree, and find the judge’s conclusion to be consistent with the prior jurisprudence of this court.”
Lai’s lawyer Peter Chapman said Wednesday that he couldn’t comment on the case or whether his client plans to seek leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.
In fact Chapman would not even say if Lai remains in Canada.
Lai, now 60, came to Canada on a permanent resident visa on Oct. 20, 1996 with his wife and children arriving shortly afterwards.
Within a year, his Vancouver house had been targeted in a drive-by shooting and politicians were asking how a notorious gangster managed to get a visa to live in Canada.
Immigration officials explained that a mistake was made at the time as no background check was done when Lai applied through the Canadian consulate in L.A.
The officials began to collect evidence that could be used to remove Lai from Canada.
The deportation hearing finally took place in February 2013 with sensational evidence from police wiretaps about a $1 million contract on Lai’s head and a Macau gang war that had spilled over into Vancouver.
A senior Mountie testified that the recorded calls proved Lai was a high-ranking Triad leader and that a triad rival known as Chipped Tooth Koi was hunting for him.
Lai did not attend the immigration hearing two years ago, but listened in on the phone from Macau. His wife and adult children were present.
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