EDMONTON: National Public Service Week was celebrated across Canada from June 14 to 20. It is a time to recognize Public Service employees who contribute to their country by proudly serving Canadians. At the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), protection and service are part of our motto – it is who we are. We work hard every day to protect Canadians, to support our mandate to keep our communities safe from dangerous goods and people, to identify threats and to safeguard the economy.
The CBSA is pleased to share a sample of June 2015 highlights from the border crossings in southern Alberta. This sampling underscores the CBSA’s commitment to protecting Canada’s security and prosperity.
Notable Cases
On June 10, Raymond Gonzales, 65, pleaded guilty to making false statements under the Customs Act and was fined $1,000 in Lethbridge Provincial Court. With the assistance of the Detector Dog Service, officers at Coutts seized an undeclared handgun from Gonzales on March 15.
Chief Mountain
Our summer seasonal port was busy and effective in June, handling nine of 15 narcotics seizures this month for the Prairie region.
A male traveller from Montana and his passenger were referred for secondary examination on June 7. After being informed of a vehicle search, the traveller told officers that he may have a firearm in the vehicle. Officers found a 12-gauge shotgun that was not loaded in a case under the seat in the vehicle. The traveller explained to officers that he kept the weapon when working on a ranch and it goes in and out of his truck all the time and that he simply forgot it was there. The man was able to return the firearm to the U.S. and returned to Canada later that day.
Taking a wrong turn held some serious consequences for a male traveller from California. During a secondary inspection on June 16, the traveller was asked to empty his pockets and officers discovered a pocket knife. The officers’ search of the vehicle revealed 224 grams of marijuana, 21 grams of mushrooms and paraphernalia found throughout the man’s car and luggage. The traveller paid the terms of release on the vehicle, was refused entry and returned to the U.S.
Del Bonita
On June 2, a 24-year-old male traveller from Colorado attempted entry into Canada at the Del Bonita port of entry. Background checks revealed the man was a registered sex offender and had three previous convictions. He was refused entry due to criminal inadmissibility.
Coutts
On June 15, a traveller returning to Alberta had his NEXUS card revoked after failing to declare a $1,607 freezer purchased in the U.S. during his stay. When questioned specifically about the freezer, the traveller continued to be deceitful and his untruths resulted in total penalties of $1,633 and the seizure of the NEXUS card.
During the month of June, in two separate incidents on June 15 and 22, members of outlaw motorcycle groups were refused entry into Canada at the Coutts border crossing. In both occasions the travellers were displaying or wearing visible outlaw motorcycle group emblems. The CBSA is always on alert to ensure visitors to Canada are not criminally inadmissible or have connections to organized crime.
Did you know that there is a ban on the importation of poultry products following outbreaks of avian flu in the United States?
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has implemented measures to protect Canada’s poultry resources from an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza reported in poultry in the following states: Arkansas, California, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, Wisconsin.
To combat avian flu, border services officers are on the lookout for prohibited poultry products to dispose of them as international waste.
Due to this outbreak, all raw poultry and all poultry products and by-products that are not fully cooked, including eggs and raw pet foods, sourced, processed, or packaged from the above states are under restriction until further notice.
There were 94,485 travellers, including 65,675 at Coutts and 19,884 at Carway.
There were 10,775 commercial trucks at Coutts.
Officers completed 447 permanent resident landings and issued 121 work permits and 6 study permits at Coutts.
Officers completed 373 permanent resident landings and issued 60 work permits at Carway.
Officers refused entry to 93 foreign nationals at Coutts and to 26 foreign nationals at Carway for criminality and other reasons.
