On Thursday, Canadian police announced the dismantling of a massive migrant smuggling network accused of sneaking hundreds of individuals from Canada to the United States.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), which worked with American authorities on the investigation, said, “Four people were arrested while arrest warrants were issued for four others at large”.
The RCMP went on to say, “The group charged migrants who landed in Canada from other countries thousands of dollars to help them cross the St. Lawrence River by boat into the United States from shores near Cornwall, Ontario”.
The federal police force reported, “Hundreds of migrants are believed to have been smuggled into the United States between July 2022 and June 2023. Some lost their lives in dangerous night-time crossings”.
In a statement, Inspector Etienne Thauvette stated, “Many people from all over the world come to North America desperately seeking a better life”.
“Transnational criminal networks are exploiting that desperation to profit from these men, women, and families, with no concern for their welfare”, the statement reads.
The accused, aged 21 to 51, include two members of the Indigenous border community of Akwesasne, where a family of four from Romania and a family of four from India died attempting to cross the river in March 2023.
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