Federal authorities have active arrest warrants for 300 foreign criminals—who are deemed a danger to the public and face deportation, according to a report. As of July, there are 37,326 active immigration arrest warrants, 33,032 of which are deportation orders. These warrants include 306 arrest warrants for people deemed a danger to the Canadian public. The authorities are searching for over 37,000 foreigners who may pose a flight risk, refuse to be questioned or attend an immigration hearing, or potentially pose a danger to the public.
Guillaume Bérubé, spokesperson for the Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA), emphasized the importance of removing individuals who are inadmissible for criminality. The CBSA considers factors such as the person’s danger to the public and flight risk when deciding whom to arrest and detain. They take into account associations with criminal organizations, engagement in trafficking or smuggling of persons, convictions for sexual offenses, offenses involving weapons or violence, and drug trafficking.
When a foreign national is convicted of a crime in Canada and ordered deported, they must first serve their prison sentence. After completing their prison term, deportees either remain in custody or live on parole in the community. However, concerns have been raised about the CBSA losing track of many foreign nationals facing deportation.
The auditor general’s report on immigration removals highlighted that the CBSA did not promptly remove the majority of individuals subject to enforceable removal orders to protect the integrity of the immigration system and ensure public safety. The report revealed a backlog of around 50,000 enforceable cases at the agency, with failed asylum claimants representing the largest share of those ordered to leave Canada.
In recent years, the CBSA has issued thousands of arrest warrants and deportation orders. However, the number of deportation orders has decreased in the past years. Despite these efforts, the enforcement and removal of individuals from Canada have faced challenges.
Meanwhile, a CIBC report claims that the official government count of non-permanent residents (NPRs) in Canada could be around one million lower than the actual number. The report suggests that any policy aimed at capping the number of NPRs is more urgent than perceived due to the undercounting of NPRs residing in Canada.