A 42-year-old Winnipeg man has been charged with human smuggling following a border incursion near Emerson, Manitoba, on September 28.The arrest came as part of a joint operation between the RCMP’s Integrated Border Enforcement Team (IBET) and the United States Border Patrol.The incident occurred around 10:35 p.m., approximately seven kilometers east of Emerson, when officers from IBET and several local RCMP detachments, including Morris, Emerson, and St. Pierre-Jolys, responded to reports of suspicious activity near Road 18 East. Upon locating an SUV in the area, officers observed several passengers and luggage inside the vehicle.After conducting a traffic stop, officers determined that a human smuggling operation was underway. Six individuals were arrested under the Customs Act, and the driver, identified as Semere Haile, 42, of Winnipeg, was taken into custody for human smuggling, in violation of Section 117 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Haile was released under conditions and appeared in Winnipeg Provincial Court on October 7.The six individuals arrested include one male from Sudan, two males and one female from Chad, one male from Mauritania, and one male identified as a permanent resident of Canada. All were handed over to the Canada Border Services Agency for further processing. The adults range in age from 30 to 53 years old.“Crossing the Canada and United States border between the ports of entry is not only an illegal act, but a dangerous one,” said Sgt. Lance Goldau, head of IBET in Manitoba. “For everyone’s safety, we continue to work closely with our United States counterparts to stop incursions at the border.”
