A court document cited by La Presse in prior reporting on the case.

A major figure in an alleged Mexican cartel human-trafficking network pleaded guilty in a Montreal courthouse last week and now faces removal from Canada for conspiring to organize and facilitate the illegal entry of migrants into the United States.

The conviction targets Edgar Gonzalez de Paz, 37, a Mexican national identified in court evidence as a key organizer in a Montreal-based smuggling network that La Presse documented in March through numerous legal filings.

According to the Canada Border Services Agency, Gonzalez de Paz’s guilty plea acknowledges that he arranged a clandestine crossing for seven migrants on January 27–28, 2024, in exchange for money. He had earlier been arrested and charged with avoiding examination and returning to Canada without authorization.

Breaking the story in March, La Presse reported: “A Mexican criminal organization has established itself in Montreal, where it is making a fortune by illegally smuggling hundreds of migrants across the Canada-U.S. border. Thanks to the seizure of two accounting ledgers, Canadian authorities have gained unprecedented access to the group’s secrets, which they hope to dismantle in the coming months.”

La Presse said the Mexico-based organization ran crossings in both directions — Quebec to the United States and vice versa — through roughly ten collaborators, some family-linked, charging $5,000 to $6,000 per trip and generating at least $1 million in seven months.

The notebooks seized by CBSA listed clients, guarantors, recruiters in Mexico, and accomplices on the U.S. side. In one April 20, 2024 interception near the border, police stopped a vehicle registered to Gonzalez de Paz and, according to evidence cited by La Presse, identified him as one of the “main organizers,” operating without legal status from a René-Lévesque Boulevard condo that served as headquarters.

Seizures included cellphones, a black notebook, and cocaine. A roommate’s second notebook helped authorities tally about 200 migrants and more than $1 million in receipts.

“This type of criminal organization is ruthless and often threatens customers if they do not pay, or places them in a vulnerable situation,” a CBSA report filed as evidence stated, according to La Presse.

The Montreal-based organization first appeared on the radar in a rural community of about 400 inhabitants in the southern Montérégie region bordering New York State, La Presse reported, citing court documents.

On the U.S. side of the line, in the Swanton Sector (Vermont and adjoining northern New York and New Hampshire), authorities reported an exceptional surge in 2022–2023 — driven largely by Mexican nationals rerouting via Canada — foreshadowing the Mexican-cartel smuggling described in the CBSA case.

Gonzalez de Paz had entered Canada illegally in 2023, according to La Presse. When officers arrested him, CBSA agents seized 30 grams of cocaine, two cellphones, and a black notebook filled with handwritten notes. In his apartment, they found clothing by Balenciaga, a luxury brand whose T-shirts retail for roughly $1,000 each.

Investigators have linked this case to another incident at the same address involving a man named Mario Alberto Perez Gutierrez, a resident of the same condo as early as 2023.

Perez Gutierrez was accompanied by several men known to Canadian authorities for cocaine trafficking, receiving stolen goods, armed robbery, or loitering in the woods near the American border, according to a Montreal Police Service (SPVM) report filed as evidence.

The CBSA argued before the immigration tribunal that Gonzalez de Paz belonged to a group active in human and drug trafficking — “activities usually orchestrated by Mexican cartels.”

As The Bureau has previously reported, Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Cabinet was warned in 2016 that lifting visa requirements for Mexican visitors would “facilitate travel to Canada by Mexicans with criminal records,” potentially including “drug smugglers, human smugglers, recruiters, money launderers and foot soldiers.”

CBSA “serious-crime” flags tied to Mexican nationals rose sharply after the December 2016 visa change. Former CBSA officer Luc Sabourin, in a sworn affidavit cited by The Bureau, alleged that hundreds of cartel-linked operatives entered Canada following the visa lift.

The closure of Roxham Road in 2023 altered migrant flows and increased reliance on organized smugglers — a shift reflected in the ledger-mapped Montreal network and a spike in U.S. northern-border encounters.

MxM News

Los Angeles County leaders have declared a state of emergency over Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations, a move that federal officials and conservative leaders are blasting as a political stunt that undermines the rule of law.

JUST IN: Los Angeles County declares a state of emergency in response to the ICE raids, will provide rent relief.

The LA County Board of Supervisors made the move as the Trump admin continues to ramp up the raids.

“The move allows the LA County Board of Supervisors to provide… pic.twitter.com/DqtvvfhWDu

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) October 15, 2025

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a “Proclamation of Local Emergency for Federal Immigration Actions,” with only one supervisor, Kathryn Barger, voting no. The board claimed that ICE raids “created fear, disrupted neighborhoods, and destabilized families, workers, and businesses” across the region.

Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who introduced the measure, said the declaration “ensures that the full weight of County government is aligned to support our immigrant communities who are being targeted by federal actions.” But critics say the move has nothing to do with public safety and everything to do with shielding criminal illegal aliens from deportation. “The only emergency is the one the residents of Los Angeles face after electing officials who give a middle finger to the law,” an ICE spokesperson told Fox News, adding that the agency is simply enforcing President Trump’s mandate to remove those in the country illegally — including violent offenders.

ICE spokesperson Emily Covington went further, saying, “Perhaps the board should ‘supervise’ funds to support law-abiding fire victims who still haven’t recovered instead of criminal illegal aliens seeking refuge in their sanctuary city. While they publicly fear-monger, I would be shocked if they didn’t agree with ICE removing a child rapist from their neighborhood.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi called the move “illegal” and accused Los Angeles County of aiding and abetting lawbreaking. “They don’t care about their citizens,” Bondi said on Fox News’ Hannity. “It’s hurting our citizens, and we’re going to keep fighting for the American people.” Chair Kathryn Barger — the lone dissenting vote — also warned that the county’s action could trigger federal consequences, noting that “the federal government has sole authority to enforce federal immigration law, and local governments cannot impede that authority.” She added that the county should instead push for “meaningful immigration reform that is fair, pragmatic, and creates legal pathways for those who contribute to our communities.”

The board’s declaration allows county departments to “mobilize resources, expedite contracting and procurement, coordinate interagency response, and request state and federal assistance” for residents impacted by ICE operations. It will remain in effect until the supervisors vote to terminate it. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced in August that between June and August, ICE agents arrested more than 5,000 illegal immigrants across Los Angeles County — including gang members, child predators, and murderers. “Families protected. American taxpayers spared the cost of their crimes AND the burden of their benefits,” Noem said at the time. “Thank you to our brave law enforcement officers. Make no mistake: if you are here illegally, we will find you, arrest you, and send you back. This is just the beginning.”

Critics of the county’s new proclamation say it sends the opposite message — one that rewards lawlessness and punishes those enforcing the law. As ICE continues its work to deport violent offenders, Los Angeles’ leadership appears more focused on fighting federal immigration law than on protecting the residents they were elected to serve.

(AP Photo/Eric Thayer)