Canada releases new numbers on asylum-seekers crossing from Northern NY

CHAMPLAIN, N.Y. (WCAX) - New numbers show just how many people are flocking to Canada via a remote road in the North Country.

We’ve told you for years about Roxham Road in Champlain, New York. Starting in 2017, people started using the rural road to walk out of the U.S. and into Canada to seek asylum.

Canadian government figures show a record 39,000 unauthorized entries into Quebec from the U.S. in 2022, nearly all of them through Roxham Road.

In January alone, crossings neared 5,000. Compare that to about 2,300 a year before.

The U.S. and Canada are discussing changing a loophole incentivizing migrants to cross via Roxham Road.

“The way to close Roxham Road is to renegotiate the safe third country agreement with the United States which is something we’ve been working on for many, many, many months now,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Feb. 22.

But the traffic isn’t just going in one direction. U.S. Border Protection released images of folks entering the U.S. Mexican consular officials say Mexicans are flying to Canada and walking south through frigid woods and farms into the U.S., some with infants and children.

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Illegal border crossings jump in Northern New York

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