Criminal records, odd explanations fail to cross the line
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Updated: October 09, 2009 3:52 PM
A man with a history of patronizing prostitutes and a couple planning to get married in Canada – after meeting in person just twice – were among travellers turned back at the local borders earlier this month.
According to Canada Border Services Agency, the couple told guards Oct. 3 that they met online and had yet to make actual wedding plans. Further investigation determined the man had a 1989 conviction for driving under the influence and a 2007 charge for assault.
The man with arrests for patronizing prostitutes was denied entry Oct. 4. Guards considered that he had also been arrested for alien smuggling and driving while impaired in making their decision.
Others turned back Oct. 4 included a man involved in narcotics distribution; a man who claimed he held the copyright for the copyright logo; and a honeymooning couple who weren't initially sure if they had a gun in their truck.
A family of eight travelling with four pets was turned away on Oct. 2, after the parents were unable to provide proof of residence in the U.S., and were deemed ill-prepared for their trip. The couple told border officers they had been living in a Georgia hotel and wanted to move to Alaska because a friend told them it was nice there.
A second family was denied entry that day after a search of their vehicle revealed a Ruger .22 firearm in the engine compartment and bullets under the driver and passenger seats. Guards also found a pipe with suspected methamphetamine residue.
The family's vehicle was seized and the travellers returned to the U.S.
Guards also denied entry to a man with charges pending for vehicle theft whose shopping list for the trip included 'a new home'; an unemployed man who had been arrested a day earlier for driving with a revoked licence; and a man planning to walk to Vancouver.
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