Residents of a small American town located a stone’s throw from Quebec reportedly struggle to feel safe as groups of illegal immigrants roam its woods on their way from Canada to the United States.
“The Border Patrol told us ‘Maybe you could put a gun in your backpack’ because nine out of ten of them are just there for a better life, but there’s always that tenth who has a record judicial,” lamented Swanton resident Chris Feeley, 52, on Monday in an interview with the New York Post.
In recent years, the problem of illegal migration in the Swanton area, located less than 10 minutes by car from the border with Quebec, has reached new heights, to the point where the inhabitants of the small town of 6,500 Residents would come across immigrants in their forest on a daily basis.
- Listen to the interview with Maxime Lapointe, immigration lawyer on QUB:
Because the border of the Swanton sector would extend over a distance of nearly 475 kilometers, offering free rein to those who wish to enter the United States from Quebec, after a one-way trip from their country to Montreal or Toronto , according to the American media.
Last year, more than 12,200 people crossed the border between Canada and the United States illegally – an increase of 240% compared to 2022 – with 70% of them crossing the Swanton sector, according to data from the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported by the NY Post.
For residents of the area, who have installed cameras in the woods or on their land, the frequent passage of migrants translates into greater vigilance, the regular presence of helicopters that vibrate the house and the number of the customs service always at hand.
“I don’t go out alone much at night anymore. It’s just scary. They may be good people, but you just don’t know their intentions,” he told NY Post resident Kristy Brow, 46, whose surveillance cameras reportedly captured several groups near her home.
According to the American media, the Canadian-American border is almost three times longer than that between the United States and Mexico, and is much less patrolled than the southern border.