Smith moves quickly on border security

Posted on December 31, 2024 by Ryan Dahlman

By Cal Braid
Southern Alberta Newspapers
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

On Dec. 12, Premier Danielle Smith followed through on the previous week’s talk of curbing illegal border activities and announced a new Interdiction Patrol Team (IPT) within the Alberta Sheriffs. After Donald Trump threatened Canada and Mexico with 25 per cent tariffs once he resumes presidency, Smith moved quickly. Trump’s threat hit home, and now the IPT will be tasked with cracking down on drug smuggling, gun trafficking, and other illegal activities along Alberta’s 298-kilometre international boundary.

 The IPT will be supported by 51 uniformed officers equipped with carbine rifles for tactical operations; 10 support staff, including dispatchers and analysts; four drug patrol dogs for vehicle searches; 10 cold weather surveillance drones that can operate in high winds with dedicated pilots; and four narcotics analyzers to test for illicit drugs.

 The patrol team is scheduled to begin operating in early 2025. The Province will create a two kilometre-deep critical border zone to enable the sheriffs to arrest individuals found attempting to cross the border illegally or attempting to traffic illegal drugs or weapons, without needing a warrant.

 After being asked why she was meeting Trump in-kind on his terms, Smith told U.S. media, “I can tell you that when I hear president-elect Trump speak and tell you the things that are irritating him, I take him seriously. We know that we’ve got a problem in Canada as well in the illegal trafficking in humans, in the illegal trafficking of guns, and in the illegal trafficking of fentanyl.”

 Smith said that her government began talks about beefing up border security a couple of years ago but accelerated the plan. It kicked things into bureaucratic overdrive and got this one done in a hurry, and it plans to invest $29 million into the new patrol team.

 In a press release, Smith said the words that were probably music to Trump’s ears. “We cannot take concerns about border security lightly. By establishing this new team of sheriffs at our southern border, we are actively working to address security concerns and stop the criminals whose activities are destroying lives on both sides of the border.”

 Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis added, “We have long recognized the need for additional capacity to patrol Alberta’s vulnerable international borders, where any amount of illegal activity is too much.”