Alleged revenue agency leak may have given personal info to gangs
Last Updated: Thursday, February 26, 2009 | 8:52 AM PT
CBC News
An alleged leak within the Canada Revenue Agency may have allowed rivals of B.C’s United Nations Gang to acquire confidential information to target its members, police say.
Mike Ryan, a retired inspector with the Organized Crime Agency of B.C., told CBC News it's not known whether the source of the leak was an outsider hacking into the tax agency's database or an insider working for gangs.
Ryan said he learned of the alleged leak through the Abbotsford Police Department in late 2007 — just before members of the United Nations gang, alleged to be one of the West Coast's most powerful criminal organizations, started to be targeted in a wave of violence that has peaked in recent weeks.
Canada Revenue Agency files contain personal tax information about Canadians including home and work addresses.
Ryan said he had to warn the Canada Revenue Agency its employees might be in danger, when serving documents on UN Gang members.
The UN Gang, angry over alleged leaks of confidential information on its members, has filed actions in the Federal Court of Canada against the minister of national revenue.
That case is expected to wrap up in April.
None of the allegations has been proven in court.
With files from the Canadian PressShare Tools
Latest British Columbia News Headlines
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- Police are looking for a light-coloured Chrysler with damage to the driver's front side after a pedestrian was hit in Surrey, B.C., early Sunday morning. more »
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- A Vancouver man who climbed the world's highest mountain is back home and talking about the adventure. more »
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- A sushi restaurant in Fort Langley, B.C., was damaged in a fire early Sunday morning. more »
Top News Headlines
- Canadian Pacific strikers face back-to-work legislation
- Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is prepared to end the Canadian Pacific Railway strike if necessary, after both CP and the union rejected a proposal for voluntary arbitration by the government-appointed negotiator on Sunday. Raitt says she is "extremely disappointed." more »
- Syrian regime denies role in Houla massacre
- The UN Security Council condemned the Syrian regime at an emergency meeting Sunday, holding president Bashar al-Assad's military responsible for the massacre of more than 100 people, dozens of whom were children younger than 10 years old. more »
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Neighbour may have helped find missing kids in Mexico
- Two Winnipeg children who had been missing for nearly four years were found in Mexico after a man raised concerns about his neighbour, according to a private investigator. more »
- B.C. NDP calls for unity in fighting coast guard closure
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- Passengers' families sue for fatal B.C. plane crash
- B.C. Coast Guard Auxiliary gets new name
- Tsunami motorcycle heading to Harley museum
- Psych ward escapes worry neighbours
- Gang forum honours Surrey 6 victim
