43 overcapacity magazines seized at Alberta border crossing in October

November 22, 2016                               Calgary, Alberta                        Canada Border Services Agency

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is pleased to share a sample of October highlights from its border crossings in Alberta. In addition to making the Prairie Region’s largest cocaine seizure (92.74 kg) on record on Thanksgiving Day, officers intercepted impaired drivers, undeclared firearms and other contraband:

At the Del Bonita border crossing on October 25, officers seized 43 overcapacity magazines while conducting a vehicle search. The CBSA has since charged Martha Ford, 46, of Cardston, Alberta on eight counts, including smuggling under the Customs Act. She is scheduled to appear in Lethbridge Provincial Court on December 16.

On October 8 at the Coutts border crossing, officers found a prohibited .22-calibre handgun, loaded with eight rounds, in the centre console of a sport utility vehicle. An Oklahoma woman was arrested and returned to the United States without the gun after paying a $1,000 penalty for failing to declare. On October 5 at Carway, officers seized a loaded .22-calibre rifle and a 20-gauge shotgun from inside a pickup toolbox. Both non-restricted firearms had not been declared, and an Alaska-bound man paid a penalty for their return and was refused entry for committing an offence.

The following incidents took place at the Carway border crossing:

• Officers intercepted three impaired drivers: an Alberta woman on October 16, a British Columbia man on October 22, and an Alberta man on October 30. In each case, officers observed indicators such as glassy eyes and slurred speech and required the driver to complete a breathalyzer test. All three failed and were arrested and turned over to Cardston Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
• On October 8, officers seized more than a kilogram of undeclared chewing tobacco from a returning Alberta woman. A vehicle search revealed tins and rolls concealed in an empty cup and in a side compartment in the trunk. When asked about this, the woman voluntarily produced another two pouches of tobacco from inside her shirt. The undeclared products were seized with no terms of release, and she was issued a penalty of $130 for failing to declare.
• On October 21, a United States woman seeking entry as a visitor was issued an exclusion order after officers determined she was actually planning to move to Canada and had already been working in the country without authorization. She is now barred from returning for one year.
• At the Wild Horse border crossing on October 2, officers refused entry to a United States man convicted of assault.

Quick Facts

•  Coutts welcomed 305 new permanent residents, while 134 entered Canada at Carway.
• CBSA officers in southern Alberta process an average of 95,421 travellers in 38,679 cars and 10,755 commercial trucks every month (based on 2015 statistics).
• Officers at Coutts, Alberta’s busiest border crossing, refused entry to 26 foreign nationals for various reasons, including criminality.
• At Carway, which processes the second-highest traffic volumes, officers refused entry to 15 foreign nationals.

Associated Links

CBSA in Alberta intercepts stun gun, impaired driver in September
Be Ready – Become a CBSA officer

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