Photo credit: Canada Border Services Agency
FOX 2 - Canadian officials arrested two men and seized 127 kilograms of cocaine from a commercial truck at the Ambassador Bridge last month.
The backstory:
The Canadian Border Services Agency announced the bust on Monday, which it says took place on September 11th.
Two Ontario men were stopped at the Ambassador Bridge port of entry arriving from Detroit, leading to the discovery.
After being referred for a secondary examination by a CBSA officer, border services officers with the help of a detector dog, found the 127 kilos, or 279 pounds of cocaine, in the trailer.
The CBSA arrested Vasyl Galychyn, 61, and Anton Chernyshov, 41, both of Mississauga, Ontario.
They are charged with importation of cocaine and possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.
What they're saying:
"The seizure of this significant quantity of cocaine at the Ambassador Bridge demonstrates our government’s action to protect Canadians from the threat of cross-border organized crime and illicit drugs," said Gary Anandasangaree, Minister of Public Safety, in a release.
"This seizure at the Ambassador Bridge shows the important work our border services officers do every day to keep illegal drugs out of Canada," said Michael Prosia, CBSA Southern Ontario Region. "Their experience, attention to detail and use of technology helped stop a significant amount of cocaine from entering the country."
Big picture view:
The CBSA Southern Ontario Region says it has seized 1.67 metric tons of cocaine this year.
It says smuggling narcotics may lead to prosecution in a court of law. For foreign nationals, this may mean removal from Canada, and a ban on returning to Canada.
The Source: Information for this report is from the Canada Border Services Agency and Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
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