Press Release
In May, Canada Border Services Agency officers at the Fort Frances port of entry processed 104,259 travellers in 57,478 vehicles, which represents a four percent increase in travellers and a three percent increase in vehicles from May, 2013.
More than 145 international travellers entered by bus.
Officers at the Fort Frances POE conducted more than 1,735 immigration interviews in May, resulting in 10 visitor records, 130 work permits, and 26 temporary resident permits.
In 34 cases, individuals decided to voluntarily withdraw their applications to enter Canada.
On May 4, a U.S. resident and his wife arrived at the POE to determine if he was admissible into Canada.
During the immigration interview, CBSA officers discovered he was convicted of felony kidnapping and felony second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon.
The traveller was deemed inadmissible to Canada due to serious criminality.
He was counselled on the steps required to overcome his inadmissibility and issued consulate information, and the couple was allowed to return to the U.S.
On May 5, three U.S. residents from Florida arrived at the POE seeking entry to Canada.
During the immigration interview, officers discovered one of the travellers was inadmissible due to serious criminality for the numerous offences, including out-of-state fugitive, fugitive/escape, fugitive warrant, and fraud.
The other two travellers also were inadmissible due to serious criminality. The travellers were allowed to withdraw their applications to Canada and they returned to the U.S.
Meanwhle, CBSA officers here also conducted roughly 3,155 secondary examinations in May for customs purposes or on behalf of other government departments, initiated seven seizure actions, one arrest, and issued additional written warnings for undeclared or under-valued goods.
On May 8, three Canadian residents returned from a same-day trip to the U.S., and one resident declared purchasing a skid-steer mini excavator worth $3,000.
The individual provided the receipt and stated that only $3,000 was paid.
Officers suspected the item was under-valued and eventually determined the individual actually had paid $6,500.
The mini excavator was seized for under-valuation and released back to the individual upon payment of a $1,777.16 penalty.
Had the piece of construction equipment been declared at its proper value, the individual would have paid about $845 in taxes.
On May 29, four U.S. residents were travelling to Canada to promote a music album and perform various concerts across Canada.
They declared that they had no promotional items for sale.
They were referred for a secondary examination, where officers found many undeclared items, including 1,064 compact discs, 47 records, 231 thermal beer sleeves, 31 pairs of shorts, and 244 shirts.
They all were promotional items the band sold at their concerts.
The total value for all the undeclared items was $4,289.89. The goods were seized and released back upon payment of a $1,192.60 penalty.
Had the goods been properly declared, the applicable taxes would have amounted to about $557.
