The price of extortion: Montreal bar and restaurant owners face escalating threats

A wave of attacks on Montreal restaurants and bars linked to extortion has hit as the busy season begins. Genvieve Beauchemin on how police are responding.

Police fanned out in several Montreal neighbourhoods in a major operation cracking down on extortion. Police say 13 suspects were arrested after 150 officers conducted the raids on Wednesday. They also seized guns and cash.

They allege they are going after groups orchestrating attacks on bars and restaurants, part of extortion schemes that have raised alarm in recent weeks.

Last month, the head of the Union of Quebec Bar Owners Peter Sergakis sent a letter to Quebec Premier Francois Legault and Montreal Chief of Police Fady Dagher calling for authorities to do more to combat extortion and organized crime.

“Extortion was always there,” said Sergakis. “But not like this, not this violent.”

Montreal gangs are using a modus operandi criminals the world over have used for generations. They demand protection money from owners, and if the owners refuse to pay up, criminals threaten, firebomb, or shoot at their businesses.

Montreal Police have mounted a campaign to warn owners against handing over money.

They have visited 800 businesses over the last few months urging them to report all extortion attempts.

“They think they are buying peace,” said the head of the Montreal Police organized crime unit Francis Renaud. “But trust me, they are not buying the peace. They are going to make you pay until the end.”

In recent weeks, a wave of attacks has hit restaurants and bars in the city. Surveillance video showed six suspects carrying what appear to be gas cans near the door of a small café in Old Montreal. They smash the window, go in and seconds later smoke starts to emerge from the scene.

At least one of the suspects is seen running away on fire. Police later arrested a man who showed up in hospital with burns. They are continuing their investigation but suspect the attackers got the wrong address, that the resto-bar next door may have been the intended target.

“This is the stuff you see in Italy,” said the owner who did not want to be identified. “Pay or we will blow it up.”

Experts say extortion threats aimed at business owners happen in many Canadian cities.

In Montreal, the reason for the escalating violence is not clear, though police have considered whether it is linked to the changing landscape in the city’s underworld.

For decades, biker gangs and Italian crime groups controlled a large share of organized crime activities. In recent years, several street gangs have entered the scene and are fighting for a share of extortion money.

“Violence occurs even before threats,” said Renaud.

But police also say the major operation they conducted on Wednesday shows that when acts of intimidation are brought to their attention, they can deliver effective blows against those responsible.