Article content

A Saskatchewan woman is facing rare human smuggling charges and others are under investigation after Mounties intercepted nine foreign nationals from West Africa who had bypassed formal channels to get into the country.

The case raises the possibility that organized networks of people on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border are being paid to help asylum seekers cross the border illegally.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Human smuggling charges for woman discovered driving nine refugee claimants near U.S border Back to video

At a press conference on Wednesday in Regina, authorities said the charges — which come at a time when Canada has witnessed an influx of irregular border crossers — stemmed from a four-month investigation.

“Throughout the course of the investigation, the (Canada Border Services Agency) uncovered evidence to suggest suspected smugglers were allegedly bringing foreign nationals into Canada from the United States by facilitating their illegal crossing between designated ports of entry,” said Jason Evert, a CBSA assistant director.