Informative roadside panels have been installed in municipalities along the Canada/U.S. border to encourage locals to continue working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police when it comes to border safety and security.
Several RCMP officers from the Salaberry-de-Valleyfield and Champlain border patrol units took part in a very brief press conference on May 12 in Hemmingford, alongside Hemmingford Township’s Mayor Lucien Bouchard; Havelock’s Mayor Hélène Lavallée, and Beauharnois-Salaberry-Soulanges-Huntingdon MP Claude DeBellefeuille, to highlight the panels which feature a dedicated phone number that citizens can use to report out-of-the-ordinary activity along the border.
The idea to create a single phone number stemmed from a meeting that took place last fall between DeBellefeuille, area mayors, and the RCMP. More than 40 panels have been distributed throughout the Valley. Additional signs will be installed in municipalities in the Saint-Jean area, in the Eastern Townships, and in the Beauce, while others have been sent to the Atlantic region.
“This is a strategy that we are going to use along the entire eastern border for the RCMP, with the goal of continuing our collaboration with citizens,” said Inspector Martin Labrecque, the officer in charge of the Valleyfield detachment.
“We have always had people crossing the border, whether with drugs or money or guns. Sometimes they are migrants, but other times they might be people trying to cross with contraband,” Labrecque said. “Our first priority is really people’s safety, no matter who they are,” he explained.
Labrecque confirmed that a 45-year-old woman from Mooers Forks, New York, was arrested earlier this month near the border in Franklin after having attempted to illegally cross into Canada while carrying firearms.
In mid-April, a vast search-and-rescue operation was launched in Godmanchester and Elgin to locate a woman and two children who had crossed irregularly on foot, with three other individuals who were intercepted by the RCMP. The search lasted for several hours and included a dog handler, night-vision equipment, and a helicopter. Labrecque said the search was called off once the RCMP was certain the three were no longer in the woods.
These two examples highlight the RCMP’s role in identifying those who choose to cross the border irregularly. “We have to carry out basic checks to determine whether these people are criminals, whether they are associated with criminal networks, or whether they are simply people looking for a better life,” explained Labrecque.
In the case of the women and children, Labrecque said they assume she met up with a car and driver that were waiting and escaped. He noted that while the investigation remains open, in cases like these the RCMP is more focused on catching and bringing charges against the traffickers than they are on the migrants.
He acknowledged growing concerns about the criminalization of migrants but reiterated that the RCMP has a job to do and that, for the most part, citizens are appreciative of their increased presence in the region. “This relationship is important because our police officers are going onto people’s private property, so it is extremely important that we understand each other,” he said.
“We are aware there are concerns. We can answer these questions, and we encourage anyone to call us or talk with our police officers,” said Labrecque, before noting the RCMP has adapted its approach based on concerns expressed by citizens.
Sergeant Daniel Dubois, who leads the RCMP’s Champlain border integrity unit, reiterated the significance of citizen cooperation. “We work hand-in-hand with citizens,” he explained, adding that everyone involved needs to separate the human aspect from the law, its procedures, and politics.
Both Labrecque and Dubois maintain that the numbers of individuals crossing the border has stabilized, and the RCMP is now watching for trends to emerge. “We are in vigilance mode at the moment,” said Labrecque. Despite this, he confirmed the increased police presence along the border is here to stay for the summer.