In a lengthy interview with The Bureau Podcast former CBSA officer Luc Sabourin provides explicit details of cases that he believes indicate transnational organized crime has penetrated the systems meant to protect Canada’s borders and corrupted some government workers.

The Bureau first reported on some of Sabourin’s explosive allegations yesterday.

AfterThe Bureau’s deadline for this story, in which Sabourin alleged Canada’s border protection agency had destroyed hundreds of foreign passports that included the identities of some suspects sought by CBSA, the agency provided a statement.

The statement did not answer this written question fromThe Bureau: “Does CBSA acknowledge that there are concerns that serious transnational organized crime has accessed CBSA systems and staff, and that the concern of fraudulent use of passport[s] and other travel documents by dangerous actors could be undermined by some CBSA staff due to corruption concerns?”

The CBSA’s statement says “allegations made by Mr. Sabourin with regards [to] the destruction of passports have been thoroughly investigated by impartial persons who have all concluded that no inappropriate destruction occurred.”

The statement continues, saying “it is legal and necessary to destroy identity documents and there are procedures to guide this. There is no evidence that these procedures were not followed.”

And “while the CBSA is aware of Mr. Sabourin concerns regarding the destruction of passports, the Agency has not received any complaints regarding threats made against him by organized crime.”

Spokeswoman Karine Martel also stated: “In this case I can tell you that the CBSA undertook two separate workplace investigations following allegations of harassment as well as cooperated with officials from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as part of their fact-finding work related to allegations of passport destruction.”

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