In an Inquiry of Ministry in the Commons, it was revealed more than 28,000 fugitives have evaded the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), including hundreds with criminal records, according to Blacklock's Reporter.The number was in response to a question from Conservative MP Brad Redekopp (Saskatoon West), who asked, “How many migrants does the Canada Border Services Agency currently believe are in Canada without a valid visa?”In response, CBSA in the Inquiry Of Ministry stated “In total, the number of active warrants issued to failed refugee claimants currently stands at 28,145 active warrants.” “An Agency officer may issue a warrant for the arrest and detention of a foreign national if the officer has reasonable grounds to believe the individual is inadmissible under the Immigration And Refugee Protection Act and either poses a danger to the public or is unlikely to appear for an immigration process such as a removal from Canada.”Among the 28,145 deportees were 410 individuals convicted of Criminal Code offences in Canada, as per the Inquiry. Another 236 were wanted for criminal activity abroad.During testimony at the Senate national finance committee on October 31, CBSA managers admitted their inability to track all foreign fugitives in Canada. “I think targets of 100% are rarely achievable,” said Jonathan Moor, vice-president of the agency. “What we have tried to do is increase our targets year over year.” CBSA has set an 80% success rate target in deporting foreign fugitives. Senator Tony Loffreda (PQ) highlighted the CBSA's annual expenditure of $445 million on border enforcement.“With many of these individuals being inadmissible on account of criminality, war crimes and other reasons, why are we not achieving our targets?” queried Senator Loffreda. “Why are our targets only 80%? Should we not look to remove close to 100% of these individuals?”“Our aim is to remove all individuals,” said Moor, adding in 2022, the CBSA deported 562 foreign criminals and 623 illegal immigrants.“What's the rationale behind setting the target at 80% rather than 100%?” asked Loffreda. “Because I think the reality is it’s quite difficult to remove individuals in all cases,” replied Moor.The latest count of fugitives was a slight improvement from a report from October 19 presented to the Commons public accounts committee. At that time, the CBSA said 29,248 foreign deportees remained in Canada.
