Organized crime at work at Montreal airport: study
Last Updated: Tuesday, September 26, 2006 | 7:55 AM ET
CBC News
Related
Internal Links
Members of criminal organizations are intimidating customs workers at Montreal's Pierre Elliott Trudeau International airport, a study conducted for the union that represents customs officers suggests, Radio-Canada reports.
CBC's French language network reported Monday that the study shows private investigators discovered that alleged mobsters had given money to workers in exchange for their help in some cases.
The airport is one of the busiest in Canada.
The alleged mobsters intimidated the customs officers and stopped them from searching some aircraft, Radio-Canada reported.
Such security breaches could have allowed criminals to move drugs through the airport , Radio-Canada said.
Jean-Pierre Fortin, vice-president of the customs officers' union, told Radio-Canada that customs officers received instructions from people not in uniform, whom they did not know and who held no positions at the airport.
Fortin said when he found out this practice was occurring, he questioned who was responsible for providing airport security.
Earlier this month, Montreal's airport authority promised it would review security at the airport after the newspaper La Journal de Montreal reported that one of its journalists was able to enter seven restricted areas of the airport and to walk onto the tarmac.
With files from the Canadian PressShare Tools
Latest Montreal News Headlines
- Montreal telemarketers in fraud case still making calls
- CBC News has learned that no government agency has taken legal action to try to stop a Montreal-based telemarketing company accused of defrauding thousands of small businesses. more »
- Man shot by Montreal police dies
- A man in his thirties is dead after being shot by Montreal police Thursday morning. more »
- Gordon Ramsay splits from Montreal BBQ
- Stick a fork in it — the barbecue chicken venture of celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has come to an end in Montreal. more »
- Dog mauled at Montreal dog daycare
- A kennel in Montreal's Côte-des-Neiges district could be facing legal action after a dog was mauled to death. more »
Top News Headlines
- Refugee reforms include fingerprints, no appeals for some
- New, tougher reforms to refugee legislation that hasn't yet come into force are already drawing fire from critics who say they give Canada's immigration minister too much power and risk the lives of claimants. more »
- Underwear bomber sentenced to life in prison
- A Nigerian man who tried to blow up an international flight near Detroit on behalf of al-Qaida has been sentenced to life in prison without parole. more »
- 7 MPs and their fiery quotes
- The election of a majority government was seen by some as a chance for less acrimonious politics on Parliament Hill. But the past week has seen its fair share of inflammatory rhetoric on both sides of the House. more »
- Bully victim's mother tells of 'suicide box'
- A mother who hired a bodyguard to protect her bullied daughter says the girl had prepared a "suicide box" in case the violence became unbearable. more »
Most Viewed/Commented
- Montreal telemarketers in fraud case still making calls
- Man shot by Montreal police dies
- Travellers at Trudeau airport witness flash mob
- Actor who played mobster sentenced to 3 1/2 years
- 4km police chase ends in car breaking down
- Quebec daycare strike suspended
- Quebec denounces gun registry vote
- Sweet Isabelle's sexy cookies a St. Valentine's hit
- Advice follows drowning death of baby

