U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is investigating after video surfaced online of what appears to be a border agent telling a driver with Ontario licence plates to “never come to the U.S. again.”
Video of the incident looks to be filmed by the driver, who said they were travelling on Interstate 90 roughly five kilometres from the Lewiston Bridge Port of Entry in upstate New York just before 8 a.m. on Sept. 22.
The short, 39-second video, which has since gone viral after it was posted on social media last week, shows the alleged CBP officer following closely behind the filming driver in the left-hand lane of the busy highway.
The driver who filmed the video said the following vehicle honked “at” their Ontario plates before speeding up and switching to the right-hand lane to address them.
The driver of the pickup truck, who appears to be wearing a CBP uniform, is heard yelling “never come to the U.S. again,” before he accelerates again and moves into the left-hand lane without signalling in front of the driver who was filming.
It’s unclear what transpired before the interaction took place and if the man seen wearing a CBP uniform is in fact employed by the federal agency.
CTV News Toronto has reached out to the person who posted the video but has not yet heard back.
In a statement, the CBP said it is conducting a managerial review of the incident.
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) stresses honor and integrity in every aspect of our mission. CBP employees, officers and agents perform their duties with honor and distinction, working tirelessly every day to keep our country safe. CBP is committed to ensuring that all employees are held to the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, and personal conduct,” a spokesperson said in an email.
The incident comes amid a decline in Canadian tourism to the U.S. this summer against the backdrop of President Donald Trump’s trade war. Last week, Statistics Canada said more U.S. residents came to Canada in July than Canadian residents returning from the U.S. That’s only happened one other time in the last two decades, excluding travel restrictions brought on by COVID-19.