Questions still surround who is responsible for allowing a convicted criminal with a history of deportation to enter Canada on a refugee claim, before he caused the death of an innocent Richmond woman.
After multiple emails and phone calls back and forth between the Richmond News and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB), neither organization accepted blame.
However, information about the process when someone enters Canada and makes a refugee claim — on a link provided by the CBSA — clearly states it’s the CBSA’s responsibility to check a claimant’s record.
“Factors determining an individual’s eligibility to make a refugee claim include whether the claimant has committed a serious crime, made a previous claim in Canada, or received protection in another country,” according to the CBSA’s own site.
The News asked CBSA last Friday to further explain why Albanian native Erjon Kashari was allowed to roam free in Canada for four years, until he caused the death of pedestrian Christy Mahy in 2014, after driving dangerously on Russ Baker Way.
By Wednesday afternoon, we hadn’t received a reply.
Kashari — who built up a long criminal record while living in the U.K. before being deported in 2009 — was sentenced two weeks ago in a Richmond court to time already served, after being extradited in 2020 from Albania to face the charge of criminal negligence causing death.
The News reached out to Steveston-Richmond East’s Conservative MP Kenny Chiu to push for more answers on why Kashari was allowed to enter Canada.
A spokesperson for his office said Chiu will canvass Opposition Shadow Minister for Citizenship and Immigration, Jasraj Hallan, to “determine the best course of action” in engaging the federal government.
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