After Montana’s attorney general said he received a request from the RCMP to conduct surveillance at several upcoming gun shows in his state, the Mounties would not confirm any plans to attend, but said they’re often involved in cross-border efforts to stem firearms trafficking that are not aimed at lawful gun owners.
Montana’s Attorney General Austin Knudsen said last week the Montana Department of Justice and Division of Criminal Investigations had received a request from the RCMP to conduct surveillance at gun shows in Bozeman and Kalispell—a request he strongly opposes.
Asked to comment on the matter, the RCMP told The Epoch Times in a statement the federal police force is often asked to participate in cross-border efforts involving multiple agencies to counter the smuggling of illegal firearms.
The RCMP would not confirm or comment on whether it had plans to attend the gun shows in Montana specifically.
RCMP spokesperson Camille Boily-Lavoie noted that U.S. law has provisions for cooperation with foreign agencies and that the RCMP works “very closely” with U.S. law enforcement partners to “assist in detecting and identifying Canadians who may be engaged in illegally smuggling firearms into Canada.”
Boily-Lavoie said the federal police force is not interested in legal activities around firearms.
“We have no authority or intention to interfere with lawful Canadian or American gun ownership or commercial activities related to firearms,” she said.
Part of Knudsen’s opposition to RCMP officers conducting surveillance at gun shows relates to an incident which he says took place at a gun show in Great Falls, Montana, in 2022.
“[Cascade County Sheriff] Jesse Slaughter found out that there were Royal Canadian Mounted Police, so a foreign police force, hanging out in the parking lot at the local gun show in Great Falls and conducting surveillance on people,” Knudsen told the radio show. “Sheriff Slaughter rightly told them to get the heck out of his county.”
Slaughter said he had not been notified the RCMP was working undercover at the time as part of a task force with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), according to NonStop Local News Montana. The Epoch Times reached out to the ATF for comment but didn’t hear back by publication time.
Knudsen expressed criticism of Canada’s political leadership as part of his opposition to the RCMP’s visit. “We are not going to let Justin Trudeau come down here and conduct surveillance on American soil,” he said.
A large proportion of illegally obtained firearms used in crimes in Canada are sourced from the United States, according to police data. For example, 70 percent of all traced guns used in crimes in Ontario in 2021 came from the U.S., according to the data from the Ontario police’s Firearms Analysis and Tracing Enforcement (FATE) program.
Montana, which borders the provinces of B.C, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, has relaxed gun laws compared to Canada, with no licence being required to purchase firearms.
Cross-border issues have come under heightened scrutiny since U.S. President-elect Donald Trump threatened to impose a 25 percent tariff on Canada and Mexico when he assumes office next month if the two countries don’t stem the flow of illegal migration and narcotics into the United States.
