| Founded | 1970s |
|---|---|
| Founding location | United States, Hong Kong, Australia, Canada |
| Years active | 1970s-present |
| Territory | Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Malaysia, United States, Canada, Australia |
| Ethnicity | Chinese |
| Criminal activities | Racketeering, Murder, drug trafficking, child trafficking, human trafficking, child prostitution, intimidation, extortion, money laundering, contract killing |
| Allies | The Company American Mafia Red Wa Fujian gangs Wo Shing Wo Menace of Destruction Asian Boyz MS-13 Netas |
| Rivals | 14K Triad Bloods Piru Street Boys Crips East Side Longos 211 Crew Soldiers of Aryan Culture Aryan Circle Aryan Brotherhood Nazi Lowriders Aryan Nations, Lynwood Vikings |
The Big Circle Gang or Big Circle Boys[1] is a Chinese triad. In 2009, the Big Circle Boys were described as "one of the largest and most sophisticated criminal conspiracies" in Canada.[2]
The gang established in the prison camps of China in the late 1960s before relocating to Hong Kong in the 1970s. They were given the moniker "Big Circle Gang" and were formed by former members of the Red Guards, a paramilitary organization established by Mao Zedong during the Cultural Revolution. After Mao eventually ordered a crackdown on the Red Guards using the People's Liberation Army (PLA), many former members of the organization were imprisoned in China.[3] However, some former Red Guards fled as refugees to Hong Kong, where they "turned their military prowess to crime", according to a Canadian court record, forming the triad known as the Big Circle Gang.