Canadian Press Wednesday, October 30 Online Edition, Posted at 6:57 PM EST
Ottawa The Canadian government said Wednesday it's doing what little it can to help a Quebec man arrested by U.S. agents after he crossed the border to pump gas. But Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham told the House Commons he can't force U.S. authorities to release Michel Jalbert, who has been in a Maine jail for nearly two weeks. "He was captured by U.S. authorities," Mr. Graham said in response to a question from Bloc Québécois MP Paul Crete. "But we'll make a submission to the U.S. authorities so that he can be reunited with his family as soon as possible." Mr. Jalbert, of Pohenegamook, Que., was arrested on Oct. 11 after he had crossed the border to gas up his truck for a weekend hunting trip in Quebec. Pohenegamook is next to the Maine border, 250 kilometres northeast of Quebec City. Mr. Jalbert had driven past an unstaffed U.S. Customs booth without stopping, and was later met by border patrol officers who noticed a hunting rifle on his front seat. He's being held in Portland., Me., on felony charges of being an illegal alien and possession of a firearm. U.S. border officials say they have been more vigilant at isolated border crossings ever since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. But while security is tighter in Pohenegamook, security in other border towns appears to be back to normal. Residents of Rock Island, Que., on the American border in the Eastern Townships, continue to cross local streets to visit U.S. neighbours, said Mayor Monique Pepin. "We have a street called Canusa, Canada-U.S.A.," Ms. Pepin said in an interview. "The border is, in fact, the yellow line in the middle of the road. "There are some people that don't go to Customs to go borrow a cup of sugar from their neighbour," she added, laughing. Mr. Jalbert has retained the services of a lawyer in Portland, who says Mr. Jalbert faces up to four months in prison. |
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"A movie was being shot and they detained me for continuity."