Iranian national with terror ties caught trying to illegally cross into the U.S. at the northern border

BUFFALO, NY - On Thursday, December 21st, an Iranian national with "links to terrorism" attempted to illegally cross the U.S. northern border just two months after he tried to unlawfully cross the border on two separate occasions. 

According to the press release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Iranian national is a permanent resident of Canada and is a national security priority who is wanted by Canadian authorities on assault charges. The unnamed man attempted to enter the United States back on October 10th at the Rainbow Bridge Pedestrian Walkway in Niagara Falls.

At that time, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers denied his entry into the United States and returned him to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) the same day. Two days later, on October 12th, the same unnamed man was arrested by CBP officers as he again attempted to unlawfully enter the United States. This time, he tried on or around the Whirlpool Bridge Port of Entry in Niagara Falls.

FOX News stated that the man was then served with an expedited order of removal in November and was removed to Canada in the beginning of December based on a Safe Third Country agreement between the two countries. Prior to being turned over to law enforcement authorities with CBSA, he remained in the U.S. for six weeks. 

ERO Buffalo Field Office Director Thomas Brophy said in a statement, "The strong law enforcement partnership between ERO Buffalo and Canadian law enforcement authorities is imperative to increasing national security and preventing dangerous individuals from fleeing justice."

He added, "The Canada resident's return to Canada to face charges is due to the dedicated officers on both sides of the border, working in tandem, to provide public safety for our communities." According to FOX News, this arrest comes amid continued concerns that terrorists may enter the country through the norther and southern land borders. 

Both borders have seen a sharp increase in illegal migrant encounters, including those who are on "terror watch lists." In Fiscal Year 2023, there were reportedly 564 encounters of people on the FBI's terror watch list at the ports of entry at both borders. Of those, 172 successfully crossed illegally into the United States.

Federal officials have stressed that encounters of those on the terror watch list are "uncommon," and have highlighted the multi-layered screening process designed to weed out those with terror ties coming into the country. On their website, the agency states, "Encounters of watch-listed individuals at our borders are very uncommon, underscoring the critical work CBP Agents and Officers carry out every day on the front lines."

It also states, "DHS works tirelessly to secure our borders through a combination of highly training personnel, ground and aerial monitoring systems, and robust intelligence and information sharing networks."

However, the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) threat assessment, which was published in October, notes that agents have encountered a growing number of individuals on the terror watch list and warned that "terrorists and criminal actors may exploit the elevated flow and increasingly complex security environment to enter the United States."