Exclusive: RCMP Drug and Money Laundering Investigation Connected To United Front Association Named In Hogue Commission

Photo by Adrian Yu on Unsplash

VANCOUVER, Canada — A sweeping RCMP investigation into Chinese underground banking, narcotics trafficking, and real estate money laundering in Vancouver has uncovered ties to a transnational Chinese state-linked association named in the Hogue Commission, according to The Bureau’s investigative reporting. The findings, revealed in a November 2024 B.C. civil forfeiture case targeting six Vancouver-area properties valued at over $10 million, focus on two Burnaby residences allegedly central to illicit cannabis cultivation, drug trafficking, and laundering proceeds through British Columbia’s booming real estate market.

A 5,000-square-foot mansion on Burnaby’s Ridge Drive, with commanding views of Vancouver’s harbor and skyline, is core of the probe. The RCMP alleges the Ridge Drive mansion was a key operational base for the Chuang family, a group accused of running a highly organized narcotics trafficking and money-laundering cell. Seized during the investigation were a prohibited Jennings Nine firearm, ammunition, a bulletproof vest, and a collection of foreign currencies, packaged in ways consistent with underground banking and lending operations. The operation mirrors international networks reminiscent of the "Vancouver Model"—a nexus of Chinese transnational casino and real estate laundering, financial fraud, and geopolitical influence exploiting Canada’s financial and legal systems.

The Bureau’s investigation has revealed that Xun Chuang, the family patriarch and the case’s only criminally convicted defendant, is a director of the “Chaoshan” community association, a Vancouver-based organization whose founder has been identified in presidential-level United Front Work Department meetings in Beijing.

Court filings confirm, “The defendant, Xun Chuang, whose occupation is unknown to the plaintiff, has a last known address of 2734 Euclid Avenue, Vancouver,” adding that “X. Chuang has previous convictions for production of a controlled substance.”

The Euclid Avenue property also serves as one of 15 registered addresses for the Chaoshan association, which is part of the Guangdong Overseas Chinese Federation, a transnational entity tied to the Chinese Communist Party’s global influence efforts. The Federation is known to operate in 131 countries, with leaders in Vancouver and China well-known to Canadian intelligence agencies.

The Ridge Drive mansion was one of two Burnaby properties targeted in RCMP’s February 2024 raids. Investigators uncovered 405 cannabis plants, 30 kilograms of shredded cannabis, and seven purple pills. Additional items included a container holding 0.95 grams of a white powder substance and 7.73 grams of a brown crystal substance, alongside a cannabis grow schedule that matched one found at a related property. The operation’s sophistication extended to social media; investigators discovered a Telegram channel advertising cannabis strains, edibles, and vapes with meet-up locations, including a $60 minimum purchase requirement for meetings in Burnaby.

The other property, a Glen Abbey Drive residence, revealed 778 cannabis plants—far exceeding the 49 allowed under a 2013 medical cannabis license—and 14.41 kilograms of dried cannabis, along with advanced cultivation equipment. Mason jars containing substances labeled “Gods Green Crack,” “Black Diamond,” and “RG #177” were also seized. Subsequent testing by Health Canada confirmed the presence of phenacelin, MDMA, and tadalafil, a substance often added to recreational “party” drugs. These discoveries suggest the operation extended beyond cannabis cultivation into synthetic drug distribution.

The Bureau uncovered deeper ties between the Chuang family and financial crime networks linked to the RCMP’s landmark E-Pirate case. As detailed in Wilful Blindness, another Burnaby property owned by Xun Chuang was co-owned with a private mortgage lender tied to Paul King Jin, the primary suspect in the E-Pirate probe. That investigation exposed billions in suspected drug money laundered through underground Chinese banks and B.C. government-regulated casinos. One E-Pirate-related transaction with ties to a property owned by Xun Chuang involved $28 million loaned by numerous men against a single Vancouver property—with Paul Jin loaning $8 million and two men busted in a Vancouver Police fentanyl trafficking probe loaning $7 million.

The purported borrower was a British Columbia government casino high-roller from China suspected of importing chemical precursors and engaging in loan-sharking, according to Canada Border Services Agency records.

Currency seized from the two Burnaby properties in the new civil forfeiture case underscores the transnational nature of their operations. At Glen Abbey, police recovered $64,470 in Canadian cash, a $1,000 Canadian dollar bill, $250 in U.S. currency, and smaller amounts of Korean, Bahamian, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Hong Kong currencies, as well as a 0.1g KaratPay bill.

During the Ridge Drive raid, police seized $5,960 in Canadian cash, $782 in U.S. currency, £950 in British pounds, RD$30 in Dominican pesos, and €525.25 in euros. RCMP officials noted that the money was “packaged in a manner inconsistent with standard banking practices,” a hallmark of underground banking schemes.

Meanwhile, a heavily redacted document from the Hogue Commission—tasked with investigating China’s interference in Canada’s recent federal elections—lists the Chaoshan association, where Xun Chuang serves as a director, among 135 Chinese community groups of concern across Canada. The Chaoshan association is also flagged in the Offshore Leaks database, which tracks transnational financial activity.

The Chaoshan association’s founder, a reported participant in United Front meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, was slated to deliver opening remarks at a 2018 Guangdong United Front conference in Vancouver. The event attracted controversy after Canada’s government blocked the visas of Chinese officials for unspecified reasons.

The opening ceremony was to be attended by Chinese and Canadian dignitaries, including the United Front Work Department’s vice president, Vancouver Consul General Tong Xiaoling, and officials from Guangdong’s Overseas Chinese Affairs Office. BC Premier John Horgan and Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson were also expected to attend, according to freedom of information records. The records further indicate that George Chow, then BC’s Minister of Trade and now a cabinet member under Premier David Eby, asked Horgan to deliver a congratulatory letter to the Guangdong conference.

Chinese state records show that an official United Front report in China noted a co-director of the Chaoshan association in Vancouver facilitated transnational PPE deliveries to China during the COVID-19 pandemic. This co-director reported to officials in China that “local communities actively cooperate with the embassies and consulates to contact all community overseas Chinese groups to prepare various medical supplies.”

As reported by The Bureau, the Hogue Commission is set to hear additional testimony from two secret witnesses—identified only as Person B and Person C—who have firsthand knowledge of Beijing’s United Front Work Department influence operations targeting electoral candidates and community organizations in Canada. Hogue has emphasized the extraordinary risks these witnesses face, including potential retaliation from the People’s Republic of China and ostracization within their communities.