LILLEY: Extortion accused and ex-con enter Brampton political fray

Local politics in once-sleepy Brampton have taken a turn, with people facing criminal charges, a convicted drug trafficker and other controversial figures becoming involved in local campaigns.

It’s strange enough that the chief of police and the current mayor, who is seeking re-election, have commented.

In one instance, two people arrested and charged in separate extortion busts are actively backing a council candidate with his own strange past. In another case, a man who served prison time in the United States following cross-border drug-trafficking charges is backing a slate of candidates whom critics claim are less friendly to police.

“We’re equally as frustrated. The mayor and I were talking about one of our extortion announcements earlier this year and some of those charged in it,” Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah said at a news conference last week.

“They’re actually, you know, out very publicly helping with people’s municipal campaign elections, which is very frustrating.”

Accused extortionists on the trail

Chief Duraiappah was referencing Dupinderdeep Cheema and Tejinder Tatla, both of whom are supporting former councillor Gurpreet Dhillon, who is trying to mount a comeback.

Cheema was arrested in the summer of 2024 and charged with extortion, criminal harassment, conspiracy to commit an indictable offence and failure to comply, that last charge indicating a past run-in with the law. Police accuse Cheema and his associates of engaging in a violent extortion ring targeting Brampton residents and businesses in the South Asian community.

Tatla was arrested later that same year in a separate bust, with police alleging he had made threats toward a business owner and his family. Police allegedly seized three firearms from Tatla’s home and charged him with unsafe storage and extortion.

None of the charges have been tested in court, and both men were released into the community pending trial.

Over the course of the campaign, both Cheema and Tatla have been showing up at events in support of Dhillon and being photographed with the candidate.

Dhillon has his own complicated past.

He was a councillor from 2014 until he lost in the 2022 election. The loss followed an allegation of sexual harassment of a woman during an official city trip to Turkiye in 2019.

While Dhillon denied the allegations, council suspended him for 90 days pending an investigation. A report by Brampton’s Integrity Commissioner found that Dhillon had engaged in “unnecessary, unwelcome, and unwanted sexual touching” of the woman, with an audio recording of the incident revealing that she said “no” 74 times in less than three minutes.

Dhillon maintains his innocence. The woman’s lawsuit was later settled out of court.

Mayor sounds the alarm

Patrick Brown, currently the mayor of Brampton and also seeking re-election to a third term, called all of this troubling.

“Enhancing my concern over criminality trying to influence our municipal election campaign is that a man charged of recently terrorizing our community through brazen extortions is now working on a campaign for Regional Councillor,” Brown said.

“What input do they expect at the regional council table from these candidates, that if successful, will oversee the police budget?”

He called on residents to do their homework on who the candidates are and who is supporting those candidates.

That is likely because one of Brown’s main rivals, Prabh Gill, is being supported by a man named Avi Dhaliwal. Back in 2006, court records show that Dhaliwal was subject to extradition proceedings on charges related to cross-border drug trafficking.

Dhaliwal was extradited to the United States in 2007 and released in 2010 after serving his sentence. He now describes himself on social media as a business leader and dedicated community advocate.

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Voters have plenty to weigh

Supporters of Brown’s campaign are accusing Gill of accepting the backing of people they view as soft on crime.

All that is to say Brampton politics is anything but boring.

Voters heading to the polls on Monday aren’t just choosing candidates, they’re deciding what kind of people they want influencing city hall.

blilley@postmedia.com

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