A B.C. man charged with extortion and uttering threats has elected to have a B.C. Supreme Court jury trial.
Rong Zan Wu, 47, had been scheduled for a preliminary inquiry before Vancouver Provincial Court Judge Andrea Brownstone May 12.
Such hearings are held to determine if enough evidence exists to go to trial.
Wu is charged with three offences alleged to have occurred between Oct. 1 and Nov. 20, 2019.
He is charged with extortion for allegedly attempting to induce a person by threats or menaces to pay an amount in excess of $5,000.
He is also charged with uttering threats to harm that person and his family.
He faces a second charge of allegedly uttering threats to the person and family to damage property.
Wu is charged with mischief for allegedly wilfully damaging and obstructing the person’s property on Vancouver’s W 23rd Avenue.
The court information in the case was filed Dec. 13, 2022 with the court docket showing the case to be 406 days old as of March 12.
According to court documents, a warrant was issued Dec. 13, 2022 and Wu got bail Jan. 31, 2023. He was in custody at the time of that appearance, documents said.
Defence lawyer Shelley Sugarman said Wu was foregoing the preliminary inquiry and consent to go directly to trial with a B.C. Supreme Court judge and jury.
Wu’s next appearance in the case is April 3.
