" C" Division - News Releases

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police and United States Coast Guard Jointly Partake in a Border Protection Pilot Project

Cornwall, September 18, 2007- The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and United States Coast Guard (USCG) jointly partake in a pilot project known as Shiprider 2007 to prevent cross-border criminal activity and to further strengthen both countries’ response capability in the St. Lawrence Seaway.  Shiprider represents a truly integrated approach to conducting joint maritime law enforcement operations in shared waterways.

Members of the RCMP and USCG conduct joint maritime law enforcement operations in the St. Lawrence Seaway Region on a distance of 100 kilometres between Valleyfield, Quebec, and Cardinal, Ontario.  Focused on cross-border smuggling and trafficking, the operations of this joint Canada-U.S. team include detecting, monitoring, boarding and interdicting suspect vessels on both sides of the border.

Shiprider will enable the RCMP and USCG as well as other law enforcement partners in Canada and the United States to gather intelligence and interdict vessels that pose a national security risk for both countries and violate border integrity.

These partners include the United States Border Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, St. Regis Tribal Police, New York State Police, Canada Border Services Agency, Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police, Sûreté du Québec and Cornwall Community Police Service.

Expanded Powers for Law Enforcement Officers
Shiprider is unique because it involves the cross-designation of peace officer status and powers to both RCMP and USCG participants.  This is what enables the RCMP and USCG to conduct seamless law enforcement operations across the border as well as assist one another in the enforcement of their laws. Command authority for all law enforcement operations, however, is based on jurisdiction. All law enforcement operations and activities in Canadian jurisdiction will be led, directed and controlled by the RCMP.

Support for the Marine Security Enforcement Team
By placing RCMP and USCG officers on a single patrol vessel, Shiprider not only allows Canada and the U.S. to leverage law enforcement resources, but also provides the operational flexibility required to interdict suspect vessels across jurisdictions.

In addition to the Shiprider pilot project, the RCMP already relies on a Marine Security Enforcement Team to maintain a police presence in Canadian waters and to enforce the laws against national security and organized crime offences, and other federal laws dealing with smuggling, illicit drugs and illegal immigration, to name a few.  

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