Manitoba RCMP are reporting that a 30-year-old Winnipeg man has been arrested and charged in connection to a recent human smuggling investigation.
On February 22, 2024, at approximately 2am, an officer with RCMP Central Traffic Services conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle located on McGillivray Boulevard in the City of Winnipeg.
Police say that the suspect vehicle contained a driver and eight occupants, one 33-year-old female, and seven males, ranging in age from 25 to 36. Seven of the individuals were confirmed to be foreign nationals from the Republic of Chad and one was from the Republic of Mali.
RCMP report that the 30-year-old male driver, Abdi Hassan Ali, from Winnipeg, was arrested for human smuggling under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and remanded into custody where he appeared in court in Winnipeg on February 23, 2024.
Officers noted that the other eight individuals were arrested under the Customs Act and transported to an Immigration Support Center in Winnipeg where they were released from RCMP custody.
