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Executive Summary

This report examines the porosity of the Canada-US border, focusing on the areas between ports-of-entry. Such locations have traditionally been perceived as low risk areas, but actually facilitate criminal activities that endanger the national security and economies of both countries. This analysis also considers the root causes of major illicit activities that flourish as transnational ventures in these border regions, and reiterates the need for increasing security without imposing further restrictions on legitimate travel and trade.

This report makes eight recommendations to improve security between the major ports-of-entry:

• Increase technological infrastructure for the Integrated Border Enforcement Team (IBET) and Coast Guard teams between the ports-of-entry.
• Increase basic security and communications measures at the small and medium rural ports-of-entry.
• Increase international interoperability and communication (such as real-time, integrated shared databases on criminal records, investigations in progress, and outstanding warrants) between the Canadian Border Services Agency, US Customs and Borders Protection, IBET and municipal, provincial, state and federal law enforcement agencies. Such a united, coordinated effort will be more successful at intercepting transnational crime and cross border insurgency.
• Develop a mechanism to enable agents from one country to pursue fleeing suspects across the border to maintain visual surveillance on their whereabouts until authorities from the other country are able to respond.
• Harmonize the sentences for smugglers and traffickers of narcotics, arms and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora-related products between Canada and the US without eligibility for early release for those convicted in Canada.
• Remove the allowance of acquiring and possessing methamphetamine and methylene-dioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) chemical precursors that do not have any legitimate industrial use.
• Increase the use of operationally proven technology to improve security in the areas between ports-of-entry to provide real-time information on threats to enforcement teams.
• Increase the number of IBET teams: these teams should have the capability to respond to threats near real-time.

Identifying the most likely between-ports-of-entry crossing points from actual data, and the field experiences of the officers on the ground, will increase the number of individuals apprehended for illegally crossing the border having significant impacts on illicit enterprises. If used correctly, appropriate technology will augment the effectiveness of the agents on the ground, especially when resources are limited.

The threats highlighted in this report are not solely international or limited to developing countries. They are present and operating domestically in both Canada and the United States at large geographic and economic scales. Although transnational crime is in large part physical, it is also electronic and operates in vast global cyber networks. Thus, an integrated cooperative international approach that makes use of tools, information and manpower is the best choice for decreasing the threats it poses to security and economic growth.