Who is Bobby Shah? Alleged Canadian Link to 'Chinese Syndicate' Fentanyl Suppliers

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

Recent moves by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) targeted Canadian businessman Bahman Djebelibak, of Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada, who is publicly more well known as “Bobby Shah.” US authorities linked the Canadian businessman to a network of Chinese fentanyl chemical precursor and supply companies.

In a telephone interview with Global News, an emotional Bobby Shah denied all allegations. He is currently drafting a petition to appeal the sanctions. Shah said the US government never contacted him to verify its information before announcing its sanctions. He said the US government’s allegations include several errors of fact.

“They literally made it look like I’m in the drug trade. It’s going to ruin my life. It blackens me,” Shah added. He described Valerian as initially being a vape juice manufacturer before it later began developing vitamin-based health beverages and other natural health products.

“This literally came out of nowhere. It’s quite detrimental to me and my family life,” Shah said. “I vet all my customers. I don’t practice anything criminal. I have four kids to worry about.”

In 2022, Shah's wife was stabbed to death in the parking garage of her real estate office. The year prior, the couple had won a British Columbia civil forfeiture case that saw seizures of fentanyl, cocaine, chemical precursors, and a drug press during raids on their home and the lab business. Also seized was their mountainside $2.89 million mansion and luxury vehicles. The court decided that their Charter rights were violated with unauthorized surveillance methods.

Valerian Labs in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada.

US Sanctions & the Chinese Syndicate

The US government has imposed tough sanctions on a Vancouver-area businessman and his companies for allegedly buying and distributing chemicals and equipment used to produce illicit fentanyl and other synthetic drugs sold across North America.

Most of the people and companies of the 28 recently sanctioned are based in China. Du Changgen is the supposed leader of the 'Chinese Syndicate'. With persons operating under him have been responsible for approximately 900 kilograms of seized fentanyl and methamphetamine precursors shipped to the United States and Mexico.

Du Changgen himself has personally received virtual currency in exchange for shipments of fentanyl precursors. The Syndicate is the source of supply for dozens of narcotics traffickers in the United States, dark web vendors, virtual currency money launderers, and Mexico-based criminal organizations such as the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

Bobby Shah was the only Canadian listed on the US sanctions announcement. Shah’s sanctioned companies are based in a unit at 1971 Broadway St., in Port Coquitlam, which had been called Hollywood Vape Labs previously.

Bahman Djebelibak, more widely known as 'Bobby Shah'.

OFAC alleges instead that Shah is “a distributor of illicit precursor chemicals and equipment used to produce an array of synthetic drugs.” It adds that he’s done business with two China-based members of a drug syndicate, Jinhu Minsheng, and Hebei Guanlang.

Shah and his companies were sanctioned specifically “for having engaged in, or attempted to engage in, activities or transactions that have materially contributed to, or pose a significant risk of materially contributing to, the international proliferation of illicit drugs or their means of production.”

The US Treasury alleges that Shah, through his companies Valerian Labs Inc. and Valerian Labs Distribution Corp., was a major customer of Jinhu Minsheng Pharmaceutical Machinery. Jinhu Minsheng sells pill-press machines with “pharmaceutical imprints on e-commerce platforms and has provided pill dies for counterfeit oxycodone M30 tablets.”

“Valerian Labs Inc. has received shipments of methylamine hydrochloride, which is a precursor chemical used to produce methamphetamine and MDMA. Valerian Labs Distribution Corp. has tried to procure 2,000 liters of chloroform, 800 liters of dichloromethane, and 200 kilograms of iodine, substances used in the production of fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine.”

The OFAC also sanctioned and blocked several cryptocurrency wallets associated with Shah including ETH, XNT, USDC, and Tether addresses.

Bobby (Bahman Djebelibak) and his late wife Ramina Shah.

Wife's Recent Murder

According to her social media on Jan. 27, 2022, Ramina Shah was filming a real estate video in the morning before she went back to her Coquitlam office.

She was then leaving work at around 4:30PM when a suspect/s attacked her in her real estate office building's underground parking garage, stabbing her. The 32-year-old mother of three young children died in hospital.

A new realtor, Shah was active on social media and described by her colleagues as an outgoing personality – loved by everyone. The couple had split sometime after the raid at their home and appeared in family court in 2021 and 2022. Ramina began alluding to a new life on social media in 2021 and had begun working as an agent with Stonehaus Realty.

Early evidence suggests it is not directly connected to gangs or criminal activity. Homicide detectives stated that they believed it was not a random act.

At the time of her death, Ramina had been separated from Bobby Shah for about 8 months. In British Columbia, there's a 12-month separation requirement before a divorce can be finalized. She had accused her husband of being abusive, filing more than one police report, including an allegation of sexual assault.

Ramina Shah posted a cryptic message on Instagram 10 days before her murder.

It said: “Be careful when it comes to revenge."

“Negative energy is a powerful force and the more you put out in the world, the more comes back on you. If you felt like you were done wrong the best thing you can do is just take that energy and focus it on improving yourself. Because in the end, you only hurt yourself trying to hurt other people. And what a waste of energy. You could have put that towards something positive in your life. I never wish ill on anyone. Even those trying to hurt me.”

According to messages that Ramina sent to her friends and family Ramina was afraid for her life and was trying to be extremely careful wherever she went. About two weeks before her death, she told friends that Bobby Shah was surprised that she hadn't dropped the sexual assault charge against him. She speculated that he must have thought he was going to convince her to give their marriage another shot, but the news that she was moving forward with the assault charge infuriated him according to a voice recording Ramina made. 

Several of these audio messages are available on Gavin Fish's page on Ramina's death. It is alleged by sources interviewed by Fish that Bobby Shah ordered the death of his estranged wife.

The couple's Maple Ridge home was raided in 2018.

2018 Raids & Civil Suit

In March 2018, RCMP searched the couple’s $2.8 million Maple Ridge home and Port Coquitlam business, Hollywood Vape Labs. That business has since been renamed and restructured as Valerian Labs, one of the companies recently sanctioned by the US OFAC Treasury Department.

The province’s allegations, which have not been proven, included that Bobby used various false identities to get people to cash fake checks on his behalf.

Officers seized multiple cell phones, and gold, silver, and diamond jewelry. 

They also seized 4 vehicles including a 2006 Pontiac G6 that had a hidden compartment allegedly hiding 2 kilograms of fentanyl, a one-kilo brick of cocaine, and chemicals used to cut cocaine for street dealing.

Valerian Labs was Hollywood Vape Labs at the time of the 2018 raid.

Police found "two tracking devices, a hydraulic press with cocaine residue in the garage of the residence, and a compatible cocaine brick mold located in a backpack, hidden behind a desk at Hollywood Vape Labs.” Also discovered at the business were several blank checks, blank credit cards, and credit card programming machines.

Police also found a “5-gallon drum of sodium borohydride, which can be used as a cutting agent for controlled substances such as Ecstasy, located behind stacks of containers at Hollywood Vape Labs,” B.C. civil forfeiture records say.

Both Shah and Djebelibak were listed as defendants, along with another individual named Majidreza Mirhosseini.

The province’s director of civil forfeiture alleged the house and the motorcycle, Land Rover and Porsche were obtained through the proceeds of crime and used for illegal activity including fraud and drug trafficking as each of the married couple reported making only $30,000 per year. 

In addition, officers found two axes on the property, one of which was kept in the couple’s bedroom.

In a response to the civil claim, Shah denied the allegations and said the property was not used for any unlawful activity.

In April 2021 A judge agreed the couple’s constitutional rights were violated and police methods included several mistakes, including unlawful aerial surveillance of the couple’s home without a warrant. The court also found that an unexplained failure to immediately reunite the infant child with a parent, who was at the search warrant scene, was also a breach.

The home is now solely owned by Bobby Shah following the stabbing death of his wife. The Maple Ridge community has seen multiple shootings in the last couple of years, with victims being known to authorities to have gang and/or criminal ties.

Criminal History

Bobby Shah had also faced a number of fraud and theft charges laid in June 2019 after a lengthy police investigation, but those charges were later stayed. 

He has a number of convictions and charges under his surname Djebelibak:

Acquitted in a 2002 stabbing in Kelowna after a judge said it was impossible to determine who was holding the knife when the other man was injured. 

He was convicted in 2003 of using counterfeit money and was sentenced to 18 months probation. 

In 2006, he was convicted of resisting a peace officer and sentenced to 7 days in jail. 

In 2008, he was sentenced to 7 months for the unauthorized use of a computer.

In 2018, the Canadian province’s allegations, which have not been proven, included that Bobby used various false identities to get people to cash fake checks on his behalf.

“Between May 2015 and January 2018 Mr. Djebelibak – using various false identities – persuaded numerous individuals to cash fraudulent cheques on his behalf,” the documents state.

He apparently asked victims to provide him with cash, gift cards, or various consumer goods, including jewelry, furniture, and other household items, in exchange for the checks, which would later be returned as “non-sufficient funds.”

According to investigative YouTuber Gavin Fish regarding Shah's wife's murder, his sources accuse Bobby Shah of ordering his wife's death in 2022.

Now, in 2023, Bobby Shah is being accused of doing business with Chinese precursor and drug manufacturing and processing equipment companies to support drug cartels.

Those sources also claim Shah was a member of or associated with the organized crime group The Wolfpack. The Wolfpack was an alliance between multi-national gangs, bikers, and mob figures in Canada to coordinate cocaine shipments, primarily from Mexico.

Wolfpack Connection  

Two men charged alongside Djebelibak over the years, Sam Abdolhosseinzadeh and Ali Shirazi, both reportedly had ties to Metro Vancouver gangs. Shirazi was sentenced to life in prison in the Philippines in 2018 for apparently trying to set up a drug distribution network. It’s not known if he and Ramina Shah, who also went by Ramina Shirazi, were related.

Ali Shirazi and James Riach before a court appearance in Manila.

Shirazi had been arrested in the Philippines with four other Canadians, in allegedly working with a Mexican Cartel that sent them cocaine and other illicit drugs. The Canadians were operating in Manila for about 7 months before police raided their clandestine lab and separate luxury apartments and seized $2.25 million of cocaine, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and other drugs including Shabu, a mix of meth and caffeine.

There was a belief at the time that intelligence reports stated that two hitmen had been dispatched to the Philipines to kill an Independent Soldier gang member connected to the operation.

James Riach, an IS and Wolfpack member fled Canada for the Philipines after being targeted.

Shirazi was arrested with James Riach and Barry Espadilla who have been long-time members of the Independent Soldiers gang but had more recently been linked to The Wolfpack, a coalition made up of some IS gang members, Red Scorpions, and Hells Angels members.

Those men left Canada after Riach was targeted in a gang war that left Red Scorpion Jon Bacon dead and Hells Angel Larry Amero wounded. Amero has since been charged in Montreal with cocaine smuggling and remains in custody there.

Both Riach and Shirazi were sentenced to life in prison in the Philippines. Many have been handed death sentences for similar crimes there as part of that country's drug war.

Hollywood Vape & Valerian Labs

The company history appears to show that the company has evolved into being mostly a chemical production and supply company versus producing, marketing, and selling products. In 2015, the company opened up as Hollywood Vape Labs to produce vaping juice under the brand Legends.

The Valerian Labs site describes their Legends vape products:

"Our juices are made of the finest flavorings which are FDA-approved and regulated. We believe that a premium line should pass all its proper testing, as well as be safe and tasty for our consumers. At Hollywood Vape Labs we take pride in being the leading premium vape juice that has the highest standards in producing vapes. We are the industry leaders in the Canadian market and strive to expand our premium brand worldwide."

In 2017, Hollywood Vape Labs displayed their products at the Vape Jam 3, a UK vape convention as seen in a Vice article on the vaping scene in Europe.

The Hollywood Vape Lab website is currently down. The local WordPress Developer responsible for designing the website also since removed images of that site from their portfolio online.

A few years later, Bobby Shah's company expanded into bulk chemical, lab equipment, and manufacturing with Valerian Labs to produce products outside of the vape industry. Valerian Labs was created in 2020 following raids and legal issues surrounding Hollywood Vape Labs and the family home. Kilograms of cocaine and fentanyl and brick presses were found during raids on the business and home. 

On LinkedIn, Valerian Labs Inc. describes itself as a small company with between 2 and 10 employees that makes colorful vitamin drinks. The company states on its website that its current services include product development, formulation, co-packing, marketing, graphic design, and even trademark registration.

The next venture advertised was a very high energy-focused Vitamin supplement drink called Vitamin Power, and other natural health products according to Shah. "Functional beverages to help you continue your daily routine at ease. Unleash your power. Helping you feel best is our mission." states the Valerian Lab website. Another product for the company is Silk Serenity, a silk accessory line including pillowcases, eye masks, and hair coverings.

The company's site also advertises services to sell bulk chemicals, lab equipment, and testing supplies as well as packaging and marketing services. Further links to those pages currently do not work.

On the company’s website, there is a waiver where customers are to confirm “that in purchasing chemicals and other supplies I have only lawful purposes contemplated.”

Shah acknowledged he bought 2 or 3 fully automated bottling machines and a pill press from China-based equipment manufacturing companies that the US has linked to the sanctioned narcotics suppliers. Shah said the pill press machine is used to legally produce health products, with proper licenses from Health Canada.

Mexican cartels and other organized crime groups often operate businesses as fronts and for money laundering needs. They can invest and generate legitimate income while being able to build connections in those and other industries and order restricted chemicals or lab supplies. Those items are either used for their own production of narcotics or sold off on the black market to mass producers from cartels.

Simply, these companies are a sourcing and logistics arm of the cartel networks.

Sources Global News, OFAC, OFAC, Daily Hive, Vice, Vancouver Sun, Gavin Fish