Const. Ian Smith’s days of desk duty are over. Once tethered to investigations and paperwork at the RCMP’s Windsor detachment, the Border Integrity Unit officer now suits up in uniform and body armor, patrolling nearly 800 kilometers of Ontario’s U.S. border in a marked vehicle. It’s a shift driven by Canada’s $1.3-billion plan to fortify its frontier—a response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats over alleged fentanyl and migrant flows, despite Ottawa’s insistence that such claims are overblown.
“We’re on 24-hour patrols now, which is new for us,” Smith said, cruising along the Detroit River, the natural divide between Ontario and Michigan. “Crime doesn’t stick to daylight, so we’re out here to deter it.” The Windsor detachment’s 30 to 40 officers—including reinforcements from other units and two Ontario Provincial Police members—cover a sprawling beat from Tobermory on Lake Huron to Port Burwell on Lake Erie. Marshlands, lakes, and rivers complicate the task, but drones, boats, and helicopters are leveling the playing field.
The RCMP’s ramped-up efforts lean heavily on tech and community ties. Smith recently trudged across a frozen river to chat with ice fishers, probing for tips on suspicious activity. “It’s about being visible and securing the border the best we can,” he said. Drones, like the unit’s newly acquired third model, give officers an aerial edge. Sgt. Ian Diplock, a drone operator, showcased the gear outside the detachment: “We’re not limited to ground-level views anymore.” With a one-kilometer range, the devices track activity across vast waterways—especially handy when ice melts and the unit’s two patrol boats hit the river.
Ottawa’s $1.3-billion pledge—over half earmarked for the RCMP, with $355 million for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA)—fuels this high-tech push. The Mounties have snagged 40 drones from the Canadian Armed Forces, plus counter-drone tech and surveillance tools. Two chartered Black Hawk helicopters now sweep the 8,891-kilometer Canada-U.S. border, targeting “illegal crossings of people, goods, and drugs” in both directions, said RCMP spokesperson Robin Percival. Exact officer numbers stay under wraps for “operational integrity,” but resources are shifting to hotspots known for irregular migration.
The plan’s goals? Disrupt fentanyl trafficking, equip law enforcement with cutting-edge tools, boost coordination, and streamline border traffic, Percival explained. It’s not just the RCMP stepping up—Ontario’s adding 200 provincial police to border patrols, Alberta’s deploying a sheriff unit, and Manitoba’s conservation officers are pitching in. The CBSA, meanwhile, is hiring over 100 new staff—officers, analysts, chemists—while training more detector dogs and rolling out advanced scanners under its Operation Blizzard, aimed at nabbing fentanyl and synthetic narcotics.
Trump’s rhetoric paints Canada as a conduit for drugs and migrants, but the data tells a different story. Since 2022, CBSA has seized 2,345 firearms flowing north from the U.S., alongside 24,000 kilograms of drugs—including over two kilograms of fentanyl. Windsor’s RCMP team is probing cases tied to 3,891 kilograms of illicit drugs nabbed at Windsor and Sarnia ports since January 2022, with 386 kilograms seized in 2025 alone. “Criminals exploit the border both ways,” said CBSA spokesperson Jacqueline Roby, highlighting tight U.S.-Canada collaboration. Smith recalled a 2022 bust where a drone smuggling handguns from the U.S. got snagged in a tree south of Sarnia. “The amount of drugs coming into Canada is a huge problem,” he said, though he’s never heard of U.S. officials flagging fentanyl heading south from Windsor.
Canadians are bristling at Trump’s tariff war and annexation jabs, with boycotts and canceled U.S. trips signaling frustration. Smith’s family is no exception, shelving plans to cross into Detroit. “I’ll keep my money in Canada until these threats fade,” he said. For now, the RCMP’s beefed-up patrols—on land, water, and air—are Canada’s answer to a border under scrutiny.