By Voice staff
Citizen reports helped border enforcement officers find and arrest three people believed to be involved with illegally entering into Canada from the United States last week.
On March 10, at approximately 8 a.m., officers from the RCMP Federal Policing Northwest Region’s Integrated Border Enforcement Team (IBET) in Manitoba responded to a citizen report of two possible migrants traveling on foot along Hwy. 201 near Neuenberg.
The officers patrolled the area, located the migrants at the hospital, and confirmed they had crossed into Manitoba from the U.S.
Following treatment for minor cold-related injuries, the two were arrested without incident and transferred to the custody of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
While at the hospital, at approximately 9:40 a.m., IBET was advised of another possible migrant who had attended a Rosengart business seeking transportation to Winnipeg.
IBET headed to the scene and, with support from the RCMP’s Black Hawk helicopter, which was already conducting aerial patrols in the area, officers located the migrant hiding in an unlocked parked vehicle. They were arrested and transferred to the custody of CBSA without incident.
At around noon that same day, RCMP dispatchers received a report of a suspicious individual loitering outside a school in the Rhineland area.
As per school protocols, the principal initiated a “hold and secure” to ensure students and faculty were safely secured within the building until police arrival.
Upon arrival, the individual was arrested for human smuggling, taken into custody, and later released without charges.
The matter remains under investigation.
“This investigation demonstrates how critical it is for law enforcement and the public to work together when responding to incidents,” said Superintendent Sheldon Hollingworth, federal operations officer for Manitoba with the RCMP Federal Policing Northwest Region
“We thank the members of the public who took the time to report suspicious behavior, as those reports allowed the RCMP to quickly coordinate resources and respond in a timely and effective manner.”
