FINTRAC bulletin warns of coercion campaign using international students
Ottawa — The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) has released a bulletin alerting law enforcement and financial institutions to an ongoing campaign in which financially vulnerable international students — predominantly young Indian men on study permits — are being recruited by organized-crime groups to act as money mules, enforcers or “foot soldiers.”
Scope and locations
FINTRAC says incidents of extortion, shootings and arson have risen and are concentrated mainly in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario. The agency identifies the Bishnoi and rival Bambiha groups as principal drivers; the Bishnoi gang was designated as a listed terrorist entity by the Canadian government on September 29, 2025. FINTRAC also warns that smaller criminal groups and copycats are exploiting the reputation of major gangs to increase pressure on victims.
How the networks operate
According to FINTRAC’s analysis under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act, extortion schemes have evolved from isolated incidents into more coordinated operations aimed at small and medium-sized businesses in construction, real estate and hospitality. Demands reported range from several hundred thousand dollars up to multimillion-dollar sums.
Intelligence indicates these networks include a mix of locally based actors and foreign nationals, loosely connected to overseas syndicates. Recruiters are targeting financially precarious students to serve as intermediaries for collecting and moving illicit funds, or to carry out intimidation and enforcement activities.
Financial signs and laundering methods
Early 2026 reporting from FINTRAC produced more than 100 financial intelligence disclosures relating to extortion, surpassing the total disclosures for 2024 and 2025 combined. Investigations flagged roughly 63,000 transactions involving about 300 subjects. Identified laundering techniques include large cash ATM deposits, extensive layering through electronic money transfers and cross-border movements to jurisdictions such as India, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
Advice to the public and institutions
Authorities are urging anyone with knowledge of businesses or property owned or controlled by listed terrorist groups, including the Bishnoi gang, to file a Suspicious Transaction Report with FINTRAC and to comply with Criminal Code obligations to disclose property holdings. Financial institutions have been asked to monitor for high-risk indicators, particularly transactions by individuals whose account activity does not match their declared status as international students.
FINTRAC and partner agencies emphasize vigilance and reporting: timely tips and suspicious-transaction filings help investigators identify networks, protect vulnerable community members and disrupt criminal financing routes.
