A double shooting in East Vancouver in September 2023 has resulted in a significant legal development. The B.C. Supreme Court has issued what is being described as Canada’s first unexplained wealth order against two property owners. The order requires Jianxin Huang and Xiao Zhen Jean Li to explain how they financed the purchase of three homes in British Columbia, despite reporting minimal taxable income for nearly two decades.

The case began when Vancouver police responded to reports of gunfire on East 28th Avenue. They followed a blood trail to a property on Victoria Drive owned by Li. There, they discovered a victim, Zuhoruddin Mansoori, who later died from multiple gunshot wounds. A second victim, whose identity has not been disclosed, is reportedly recovering.

British Columbia’s Public Safety Minister, Nina Krieger, expressed satisfaction with the court's decision, stating that unexplained wealth orders compel individuals to demonstrate the legal origins of their assets. "To prove that their luxury property, cars or cash were obtained legally, or risk losing them," she said.

The order alleges that Huang and Li acquired their properties and approximately $1.5 million in cash through illegal cannabis production and failure to report taxable income. Although Huang was arrested in connection with the shooting, he has not been charged with any crime.

In December 2023, B.C.'s Director of Civil Forfeiture filed a lawsuit seeking to seize the properties owned by Huang and Li, claiming they were obtained unlawfully. Both individuals have denied the allegations of profiting from illegal cannabis sales. Li stated that her funds for the properties came from "salaries, gifts, inheritance and loans."

A search of Li's home revealed nearly $1.5 million in cash, over 75 kilograms of cannabis, and applications for Canada Child Benefit and BC Family Benefits that claimed she earned less than $1,000 annually. Despite this, Li purchased her Victoria Drive home in 2005 for $588,000, another property with Huang in 2013 for $705,000 in cash, and a third property in Abbotsford in 2020 for $1.7 million.

The court ruling noted that both Huang and Li had been flagged in multiple suspicious transaction reports submitted to Canada’s money laundering watchdog from four banks between 2017 and 2023. These reports highlighted large cash deposits and significant BC Hydro bill payments across various accounts.

The court has mandated that Huang and Li provide documentation regarding their property acquisitions, details on several utility accounts, and tax returns dating back to 2003. The introduction of unexplained wealth orders in B.C. in 2023 was based on recommendations from the Cullen Commission of Inquiry on money laundering.