The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) today announced the sentencing of Ismail Nababteh, 47, of Calgary, Alberta following a CBSA investigation into human smuggling. On July 9, 2021, in New Westminster Supreme Court, Nababteh received a 15-month conditional sentence, including three months of house arrest.
The sentencing decision is linked to an incident on July 13, 2017, when Nababteh facilitated, for profit, the entry into Canada of a foreign national across the Canada/U.S. border. Nababteh smuggled the individual into Canada at a place other than a designated border crossing, in order to avoid the mandatory CBSA screening and reporting requirements.
This is Nababteh's second conviction for human smuggling under Section 117(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). At the time of the 2017 incident, Nababteh was on bail for charges related to a previous human smuggling incident that occurred in October 2016. He was later convicted of smuggling three individuals into Canada during the 2016 incident and sentenced to six months less one day imprisonment.
Quotes
"The CBSA is committed to combatting human smuggling, protecting vulnerable persons, and maintaining our border integrity. The Agency works closely with its partners, including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, to identify, investigate and prosecute those engaging in immigration fraud."
- John Linde, Director, Intelligence and Enforcement Operations Division, Canada Border Services Agency
Quick facts
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The CBSA is committed to combatting cross-border crimes, including human smuggling per section 117(1) of the IRPA, to maintain border integrity, protect vulnerable persons, and prosecute offenders.
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Human smuggling involves a person illegally crossing over an international border. The person implicated chooses to be smuggled and has made an agreement with another person or group of people, usually in exchange for a sum of money and sometimes in dangerous conditions. The relationship between the person and the smuggler normally ends when the smuggled person arrives at their destination.
