Judge dismisses appeal from man caught smuggling illegal migrants at Sault border crossing
A judge has dismissed an appeal from a man found guilty of trying to smuggle himself and three other people into Canada at the border at Sault Ste. Marie.
The man was stopped at the border April 15, 2017, and gave border officials four Canadian passports. Two of the phony passports raised alarm bells.
“The appellant was then questioned by the (border security officer) and stated that the group was from Toronto, worked in the Sault Ste. Marie area, and had been in the United States for a few hours,” the court transcript said.
“At the secondary inspection point, the appellant and other individuals were detained because (border officials) doubted the validity of the information being provided by the passengers after their brief questioning and because the passengers did not resemble the photographs in the Canadian passports.”
A search of the car yielded Nigerian passports hidden in a vent under the backseat and U.S. entry visas that matched the names on the passports.
“One of the officers compared the Nigerian passports to the detained individuals and formed the opinion that the individuals resembled the photos in those passports,” the court transcript said.
He was found guilty on two charges of violating the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act for helping people evade immigration laws.
On appeal, his lawyer argued evidence from border security that the people in the vehicle didn’t match the passport photos should not have been admitted.
The appeals judge disagreed.
“The evidence was a first-hand account of witnesses who made observations at the time the offences were committed,” the judge wrote.
“These direct observations were not fleeting, and the trial judge had copies of both Canadian and Nigerian passports to assist him in assessing the evidence from the witnesses. It was for the trial judge to consider any frailties in the identification.”
JUDGE MADE AN ERROR
The defence also argued that the trial judge made a mistake in assessing evidence central to his client being found guilty.
During the trial, the judge identified the wrong border officer as saying the photos on the Nigerian passports matched the suspect.
But the appeals judge said the fact that it was another border officer who made the identification didn’t affect the outcome of the case.
“The trial judge did not make a mistake about the substance of the evidence or fail to give proper effect to the evidence,” the transcript said.
“He simply attributed the evidence that he comprehensively summarized in his reasons to the wrong witness … In our view, the body of circumstantial evidence supporting guilt, which included the Nigerian passports and other items found in the car was overwhelming and readily surpasses the unreasonable verdict threshold.”
Read the full transcript here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.