Feds expand wanted list to include 32 immigrants convicted of crimes in Canada

The federal government is expanding its online wanted list to include immigrants and refugees who have been convicted of serious crimes in Canada and are facing deportation.

The Canada Border Services Agency is adding 32 people to a new section of the “Wanted by the CBSA” page on its website, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews announced Thursday.

The 30 men and two women on the list came to Canada through the immigration and refugee system and have permanent resident status. Toews said they have been convicted on charges with the legal designation of “serious criminality” — crimes with a sentence of more than six months — which were committed here.

All are wanted on Canada-wide removal warrants, while many on the list could not be found after they finished serving time in custody.

“They have been punished and they have no right to remain here,” Toews told reporters at a news conference.

Almost everyone on the list has multiple convictions, with assault-related offences the most common infraction. Twelve people were sentenced for drug trafficking and one for second-degree murder.

The individuals on the list come from all over the world, including Latin America, Africa, China and Europe.

There are 2,700 permanent residents convicted of serious crimes across Canada, Toews said.

Toews said those who are allowed to come here but who break the law do a disservice to the “vast majority” of immigrants who play by the rules.

“If we do not act against those who abuse our generosity, then we fail our legitimate and deserving immigrants and would-be immigrants,” Toews said.

“Those who believe they are above the law will find no leniency in this country.”

CBSA president Luc Portelance said the new website is a “sensible and legitimate” way for the agency to enforce Canada’s immigration laws, and that it is “by no means an exhaustive list.”

More than 15,000 people were deported last year, including 1,800 for “association to criminality,” he added.

The move comes after the border agency added a section to its website on July 21, listing the names and photos of 30 people wanted for alleged war crimes.

That list has attracted controversy from human rights groups who say the federal government should try alleged war criminals here, instead of sending them to face justice in their home countries.

Alex Neve, head of Amnesty International Canada, a group which has been critical of the accused war criminal list, said in an email that Ottawa should make sure none of those on the expanded list “are removed to a country where they may face a serious risk of being tortured or of other grave abuses.”

Toews said publicizing the identity of those accused of human rights crimes abroad has been a success, pointing to the six people who have been apprehended since the website launched.

He said another two have been identified overseas — results that led the government to consider setting up a similar list for individuals wanted on deportation warrants.

Janet Dench, executive director of the Canadian Council for Refugees, called the wanted list expansion another example of the government’s “very negative messaging” towards immigrants.

“If (Toew’s) saying that the vast majority don’t commit crimes why is it that so much of the vast majority of what the government’s saying about immigrants is talking about criminality and fraud?”

Information on the 32 fugitives and the agency’s tipline can be found at the Canada Border Services Agency website http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/menu-eng.html.

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