Police can't prosecute
Chinese smugglers WebPosted Tue Oct 12
08:27:25 1999
VANCOUVER - Police in British Columbia
have been told they don't have enough evidence to prosecute some of
the smugglers who brought Chinese migrants to Canada last summer,
CBC News has learned.
The RCMP were hoping to lay human smuggling charges against the
crew of the first boat that brought 125 people to B.C., but the
Crown felt the charges wouldn't stand up in court.
The Crown has sent the file back to police and told them to
keeping working on it.
"The fact that it's not approved at this point does not mean it
won't be approved at some time," RCMP Cpl. Grant Learned told CBC
News. "It just means that there's going to be additional work
required and they don't have any idea how long that will take at
this point."
Learned said the police investigations into the other three
migrant ships that arrived later in the summer are still ongoing.
The 19 crew from boat one have claimed refugee status in Canada,
as have the 67 passengers who remain in Canada.
Thirty-seven other migrants disappeared once they were released
from custody.
In the past, police have said many Chinese migrants seemed to
know little about the "snakeheads" -- gang members -- who brought
them to Canada.
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