FOUR Richmond residents are among five people who have charged following a five-year investigation, Project Husky, by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) into a large-scale alleged immigration fraud scheme.

The investigation began in 2015 based on Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada officials’ identification of suspicious documents submitted as part of permanent residency applications. On the surface, these appeared to be nomination certificates from the Government of Yukon issued under the Yukon Business Nominee Program. However, the Government of Yukon confirmed these documents were non-genuine and had not been issued by their office. 

Since the non-genuine documents were detected during the processing of applications, none of the applications to immigrate to Canada were approved. Therefore, no one obtained permanent resident status as a result of this alleged scheme. 

The CBSA Criminal Investigations Section executed numerous search warrants in British Columbia and Yukon seeking evidence of the alleged fraud scheme. Five people are now facing charges for alleged violations of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Criminal Code committed between July 2013 and September 2016:

• Ian David Young, 59, of Whitehorse, Yukon
• Tzu Chun Joyce Chang, 49, of Richmond, B.C.
• Qiong Joan Gu, 66, of Richmond, B.C.
• Aillison Shaunt Liu (also known as Allison Shaunt Liu), 31, of Richmond, B.C.
• Shouzhi Stanley Guo, 38, of Richmond, B.C.

The CBSA said that all of the accused are presumed innocent until proven guilty. They are scheduled to appear in Richmond Provincial Court on December 23, 2020.

Young is currently wanted on a Canada-wide arrest warrant. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is encouraged to call the CBSA’s anonymous Border Watch Line by dialing 1-888-502-9060.

Nina Patel, Regional Director General for the Pacific Region, CBSA, said on Thursday: “Project Husky shut down a large-scale alleged immigration fraud scheme that impersonated a legitimate nominee program. This investigation highlights the CBSA’s commitment to protecting Canadians and prospective immigrants from the threats posed by unlawful activities.”

Members of the public are encouraged to report suspicious immigration activities to the CBSA by calling 1-888-502-9060.

Links:

Backgrounder: charge information

Border Watch Line
How to report fraud