Alleged foreign interference entangles Liberals and Conservatives in one riding

In his new role as special rapporteur investigating alleged foreign interference, David Johnston will likely take a deep dive into the suburban Toronto riding of Don Valley North, which is emerging as a nexus for alleged meddling by China.

In his new role as special rapporteur investigating alleged foreign interference, David Johnston will likely take a deep dive into the suburban Toronto riding of Don Valley North.

The riding is emerging as a nexus for alleged meddling by China. It’s represented federally by a Liberal and provincially by the Progressive Conservative party -- but what raises eyebrows are their connections to a wealthy supermarket mogul with close ties to the Chinese Consulate in Toronto.

The connections are between Liberal MP Han Dong, PC MPP Vincent Ke and supermarket mogul Wei Chengyi. Wei owns the Foody Mart grocery chain that has stores in Ontario and British Columbia. The two politicians often appear with the businessman at events covered by Chinese ethnic media.

But for Canadians who don’t speak Mandarin or Cantonese - only now is the tangled web of relationships being unravelled.

Four years ago, Wei attended a conference in Beijing for overseas Chinese business leaders. Media reports from May 2019 show video of him shaking hands with China’s President Xi Jinping.

One month later, Dong announced he would enter the nomination race to become the Liberal candidate for Don Valley North in Canada’s federal election that fall. He launched his campaign at the Foody Mart head office located in the riding. Wei stood alongside him.

After Ke won his provincial seat in 2018, Wei was listed in the credits as a main advisor on a documentary celebrating Ke’s win. The feature was posted on 365 Net TV, a Chinese digital program.