Travellers trying to head into Canada last weekend learned a couple of things: it’s not a good idea to try and bring a shotgun along, and the odds of success are better without a criminal record.

Border guards turned away a bevy of hopefuls Sept. 25-27, including a man Sunday who admitted to having a 12-gauge shotgun in his truck. The gun was seized, and the U.S. citizen was fined and sent home.

Also on Sunday, police were called after guards suspected a Canadian man returning from a weekend in Birch Bay was impaired. Breath samples showed the man’s blood-alcohol level was more than double the legal limit, said Canada Border Services Agency officials.

Saturday, a U.S. woman wanting to visit the Richmond night market was deemed inadmissible due to assault; and a U.S. man was denied entry on financial grounds, after telling guards he planned to stay in the country through 2009, on just $400.

A man with a 2002 conviction for indecent exposure was also turned back Saturday. He told guards he had no particular plans for his visit, other than to drive around Vancouver for a few hours and then head to Victoria. Others turned away were a man with a conviction for assault with a deadly weapon, and a casino-bound couple travelling with their one-year-old grandson.

A Canadian man denied entry to the U.S. Sept. 25 was arrested on multiple charges after becoming verbally abusive with guards. According to CBSA, the man’s behaviour escalated from shouting profanities into an “uncontrollable rage.” He is facing charges of assault of a peace officer, resisting arrest and causing a disturbance.

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Police responding to reports of border jumpers arrested several individuals recently.

Saturday (Sept. 26), U.S. Border Patrol agents alerted RCMP to a man seen entering the country at 2 Avenue and 172 Street around 4 p.m. Working with CBSA, officers arrested a 22-year-old.

Three adults and a child were taken into custody Sept. 19, after CBSA contacted Surrey Mounties just after 3 p.m. They were located near 0 Avenue and 172 Street.

All of the border runners were detained under the Immigration Act.