17 September 2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Vancouver Liberals Pledge to Address Organized Crime and Target Vancouver’s “Tony Sopranos”
Kareem Allam, Vancouver Liberals commit to going higher up the organized crime food chain to target “Tony Soprano” level criminals
VANCOUVER, BC - Kareem Allam and the Vancouver Liberals have today announced their plan to tackle organized crime. Poverty, drug use, and homelessness are intertwined with high-level organized crime in Vancouver and addressing one requires addressing the other.
Ken Sim’s strategy of focusing solely on street-level crime hasn’t worked. A Liaison Research survey found that Vancouver is perceived as Canada’s third worst city for safety. Additionally, last month a 275% increase in business break-ins in Chinatown was reported - the opposite of an improvement in community conditions. This kind of increase in crime dissuades Vancouverites from wanting to start businesses or live in the area, and we want every community to flourish and feel safe.
The Vancouver Liberals will take a different approach to Ken Sim’s. “We’re tired of seeing ineffective attempts to deal with organized crime in our City and want to go after the “Tony Sopranos” - the highest level kingpins and traffickers,” said Allam. “The Liberals will implement new policies and strategies as well as work with provincial and federal law enforcement to target those at the top of the supply chain instead of only those at the bottom.”
Those who supply drugs to our streets perpetuate cycles of crime and poverty, which creates an uphill battle for the City of Vancouver in preventing the flow of drugs, supporting those with damaging addictions, and lifting people out of poverty.
Allam provided an explanation as to why the “Tony Soprano” approach is necessary and outlined steps that the Vancouver Liberals will take:
“Vancouver’s worst criminals don’t live in the Downtown East Side; they live in penthouses in Yaletown and Coal Harbour, funding their lifestyles with the proceeds of crime that are often money laundered.
Their supply chains span several jurisdictions, with international law enforcement such as the United States’ FBI needing to cooperate with the RCMP to arrest high-profile criminals. These supply chains create havoc in every community they traffic to and through, including Vancouver, while their operators get filthy rich.
There are several steps I want to take to investigate and arrest the “Tony Sopranos”. I want to increase VPD funding so that more officers can join the RCMP’s Federal Serious Organized Crime unit, a collaborative unit that investigates high-level threats crossing international and inter-jurisdictional borders. I also want to increase local cooperation with Canadian Border Services agents and advocate for the increases in the Canadian Coast Guard’s underwater marine intervention capacity.
If a cartel suddenly doesn’t have someone to organize their logistics, that’s a meaningful blow to their supply chain. We want to hit the problem upstream, not downstream.
The Port of Vancouver’s capacity is larger than Canada’s five next largest ports, and as a result Vancouver is over-exposed to the international drug trade. It’s time for senior levels of government to acknowledge Vancouver needs their support."
Through Allam’s stated priorities, the Vancouver Liberals will identify, investigate, and arrest people involved in trafficking at the highest levels. Allam further explained, “To be absolutely clear - a Vancouver Liberal government won’t neglect street-level crime. Vancouver’s residents and business owners need to feel safe but it can’t be a singular strategy. Ken Sim’s sole focus on the bottom of the food chain is nothing but an electoral puff piece - he just wants to be in office, and doesn’t have a plan to meaningfully tackle Vancouver’s problems and create a safer city.”
Media Assets:
Video (YouTube): https://youtube.com/shorts/n1QFd1i0Jls?feature=share
Kareem Allam is available to speak with members of the media.
Media Contact:
Vancouver Liberals Communications