Border agents seize more than $1M of illegal cannabis in Calgary over a year
Posted Jul 23, 2025 11:14 am.
Last Updated Jul 23, 2025 6:52 pm.
Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers have seized more than $1.2 million worth of illegal cannabis at the Calgary International Airport and Calgary Commercial operations.
The government says the drugs were destined to be exported via organized crime which funds other illegal activities like narcotics and weapons smuggling.
Among these seizures, border services officers at YYC seized 109 kilograms in four separate smuggling attempts.
They say in each attempt, the weed was discovered in vacuum-sealed packages in suitcases that were destined for the United Kingdom (U.K.). The travellers involved were arrested by CBSA officers.
In three of the seizures, the individuals arrested were Canadian citizens.
In another case, the drugs were found in the suitcase of a traveller from Hong Kong.
At Calgary Commercial operations, CBSA officers intercepted nine packages that had small amounts of cannabis, each ranging from one kilograms to 10 kilograms. All of the packages were destined for either the U.K., Belgium, and the Netherlands.
Although cannabis is legal in Canada, the illegal cross-border movement of cannabis is a serious crime, punishable with up to five years in prison under the Customs Act and up to 14 years under the Cannabis Act.
