By Ismail Shakil
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canadian and U.S. authorities worked together in a year-long investigation into cross-border firearms trafficking that led to 42 arrests and the seizure of guns and illegal drugs, Toronto police said on Tuesday.
The arrested individuals, who face a total of 422 criminal charges, will return to a Toronto court on Friday, police said in a statement. Authorities allege that the individuals were involved in illicit firearms sales in Toronto and surrounding areas.
Canada’s gun homicide rate is a fraction of the United States’ rate, 2020 data showed, but is still higher than other wealthy countries and has been rising. Most of the handguns used in crimes in Ontario, the most populous province, are smuggled from the United States.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government has pledged to crack down on gun crime through strict gun control measures, including a national freeze on the sale, purchase or transfer of handguns within Canada.
Of the 173 seized firearms, most were handguns, the Toronto Police Service said. The majority of the firearms were being smuggled into Canada from the United States, and some were domestically sourced, it said.
Police also seized about C$300,000 ($222,700) worth of fentanyl and cocaine worth about C$190,000.
The Toronto Police Service initiated the investigation in March 2022, and worked with other regional police and border authorities in Canada and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Canada has stricter gun laws than the United States, but Canadians can own firearms with a license, and long guns meant to be used for hunting do not have to be registered.
Last year, Canadian police arrested 22 people, seized 27 handguns and drugs worth C$1.3 million during a 10-month investigation into a gun- and drug-trafficking network operating in Canada and the United States.
($1 = 1.3471 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
