A Winnipeg man faces human smuggling charges after RCMP and U.S. Border Patrol officers arrested a vehicle full of people east of Emerson, Man., late last month.
Police said they were called to a scene near Road 18 East on the night of Sept. 28, where an SUV was spotted near the Canada-U.S. border. Officers spotted numerous people and luggage in the vehicle and pulled it over.
According to RCMP, the 42-year-old driver was charged with human smuggling, while the other people arrested — one from Sudan, three from Chad, one from Mauritania and one permanent resident of Canada — were handed over to the Canada Border Services Agency.
“Crossing the Canada and United States border between the ports of entry is not only an illegal act, but a dangerous one,” Sgt. Lance Goldau, head of Manitoba’s Integrated Border Enforcement Team, said in a release Wednesday.
“For everyone’s safety, we continue to work closely with our United States counterparts to stop incursions at the border.”
RCMP detain 8 people near Manitoba border crossing, human smuggling charges laid
