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Another factor is the proposed Canada and China repatriation treaty, in which China hopes to seize and get back some portion of Canadian assets that China alleges have been purchased by fugitives with ill-gotten gains.

Another factor, Alderson’s presentation notes, is China’s “Operation Fox Hunt.” It is not clear what Alderson told his audience about this. But the operation refers to one of China’s publicized lists of alleged corrupt officials believed to have absconded to Canada with state assets.

Documents obtained by Postmedia in a previous freedom of information disclosure show that B.C.’s gaming policy enforcement branch has conducted an audit to determine if any of the top 100 alleged financial fugitives named by China “are gambling or have gambled in B.C. gaming facilities.”

The audit shows a clipping of eight suspects from China’s so-called “SkyNet List.”

However, several pages of findings and a conclusion on whether these suspects have gambled in B.C. casinos are completely redacted. A spokeswoman for the Attorney General’s ministry said an investigation is continuing, and results of the audit cannot be released.

As for alleged police operations by China in B.C., and what affect this could have on VIP gamblers, no further information is disclosed in Alderson’s presentation. One known case of Chinese agents entering Canada in pursuit of a financial fugitive was that of Lai Changxing, the alleged mastermind of a billion-dollar smuggling operation in China. Lai lived in Richmond for a number of years, and was associated with gangsters, loan sharks, and legal and illegal casino activity, according to reports. Lai was returned to Beijing in 2011, after being visited by agents from China and legally fighting his repatriation through Canada’s immigration and refugee system.