CBSA and Edmonton Police Service laid charges against local importer

EDMONTON, AB, Oct. 7, 2020 /CNW/ - Today, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and Edmonton Police Service announced charges laid against an Edmonton resident for smuggling fraudulent Edmonton Transit Service (ETS) bus passes.

On June 26, 2020, CBSA officers from the Edmonton International Airport (EIA) Commercial Operations examined a package from China declared as 'book and business cards' and destined to an Edmonton address. The package contained a book and 16 plastic playing card sleeves with ETS adult bus passes for the month of July. In total, 1,047 bus passes with a street value of approximately $101,500 were found in the package. As fraud was suspected, the seizure was referred to the CBSA Criminal Investigations Division in Edmonton for further investigation.

Upon further examination, the CBSA criminal investigators discovered that there were genuine bus passes in the package that were used as reference samples for the mass-produced fraudulent ones.

The case and fraudulent bus passes were transferred to the Edmonton Police Service for investigation.

Police officers under judicial authorization delivered the package to its intended recipient and arrested Yuexuan Wu, a 31-year-old male of Edmonton, Alberta, thereafter.

The CBSA charged Wu with the following counts:

• Smuggling, pursuant to Section 159 of the Customs Act; and
• Possession of imported prohibited goods, pursuant to Section 155 of the Customs Act.

The EPS charged Wu with the following counts:

• Possession of forged documents, pursuant to Section 368(1)(d) of the Criminal Code of Canada (CCC); and
• Property obtained by crime, outside of Canada, pursuant to Section 355.2 of the CCC.

Quotes
"The Canada Border Services Agency and the Edmonton Police Service are committed to dismantling criminal organizations in our communities. Charges laid today demonstrate our joint effort to safeguard Canadians and to protect our economy during these difficult times."
– Brad Wozny, Acting Regional Director General, Prairie Region, Canada Border Services Agency

"This was an example of excellent cooperation between Edmonton Police and the CBSA that allowed us to stop fraudulent activity right at its entry point into the country."
– Const. Jess Bagan, Edmonton Police Service

Quick Facts

• Anyone with information about suspicious cross-border activity is encouraged to call the CBSA Border Watch Toll-free Line at 1-888-502-9060.
• CBSA investigators play a key role in protecting the safety and security of Canadians across the country.

Follow us on Twitter @CanBorderPRA.

SOURCE Canada Border Services Agency