The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has been searching for nearly 600 foreign nationals with criminal records who are set to be deported but have gone missing, including 431 individuals who have committed serious offences.
CBSA data shows that 1,635 foreign nationals with criminal records were facing deportation as of July 16, but 599 had “failed to appear for a scheduled removal proceeding” and been placed on the agency’s “wanted” list.
About 315 of those on the list have been deemed “wanted” for more than three years while 46 have been missing for at least two years.
Of the total number of foreign nationals facing deportation, 401 are currently in jail for a crime committed in Canada and are to leave Canada when they are released from jail.
CBSA spokesperson Luke Reimer told The Epoch Times in an email that the agency has an obligation to remove those under “enforceable removal orders” as soon as possible for the “protection and safety of Canada and the Canadian public.”
Reimer said the CBSA has a “risk management regime” for prioritizing deportation, with cases of criminality at the top of the list.
The CBSA said 431 of those on the wanted list fall under the category of “serious criminality,” meaning conviction of a crime punishable by a maximum of 10 years in jail.
Conservative MP and immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner expressed concern that the number could go higher.
“With the Liberals in the executive branch putting no limits on the judiciary considering immigration status in sentencing, there will be more than 600 soon,” she said in a July 29 post on X.
Reimer said border agents conduct regular warrant reviews to “identify new leads” that could help them locate those on the wanted list or confirm they have left the country.
Those facing deportation “have incentive not to be found,” Reimer said, noting they may be relying on family and community members to hide them.
“Some individuals may resort to using alternate identities to avoid detection,” he said.
The CBSA removed 18,000 people from Canada over the past fiscal year, said Reimer, adding that was the highest number of deportations in about 10 years.
Chandra Philip is a news reporter with the Canadian edition of The Epoch Times.