Securely Travel Travel Securely
A British group of seven visiting British Columbia “accidentally” detoured off the main road and ended up in the United States. Shortly after crossing the border stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers. The CBP officers arrested them for illegally entering the United States.
The family claims they ended up lost because they “swerved to avoid an animal.” CBP says that aerial surveillance showed the vehicle in which the group was “slowly and deliberately driving through a ditch” from British Columbia into Lynden, Washington a small town in proximity to the U.S.-Canada border. More specifically, CBP said the car was “observed by remote video surveillance turning west onto Avenue 0 in British Columbia at about 9 p.m. on Oct. 2. The vehicle then turned south and entered the U.S. “by slowly and deliberately driving through a ditch” onto Boundary Road in [Lynden], Washington. The car was pulled over by the Border Patrol at 9:13. “
The group claims that they were victims of a wrong turn and border location ignorance.
Once detained, it was learned that two of the four adults in the group had previously “been denied travel authorization” into the U.S. Furthermore the group was carrying $16,600 in Canadian cash. Thus it appears that this wasn’t a case of border ignorance, but rather an attempt to illegally enter the U.S.
CBP contacted Canadian border authorities and requested permission to send the group back to Canada. Canada wanted nothing of it, and declined.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that members of the group, specifically David and Eileen Connors were shipped from the Pacific Northwest to the Berks Detention Center located in Leesport, PA where Immigration and Customs Enforcement for processing and eventual deportation. The Connors obtained legal consul and have filed a complaint with the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Whether one agrees or disagrees with how the above scenario played out, the lesson within screams to know where you are when traveling in a foreign country. Know where the borders are located, especially if you lack proper authorization to enter the next country over.
