Jonghun Lee, 38, pleaded guilty at the Laval courthouse on Nov. 18 to charges of forgery and smuggling after border officers intercepted a parcel from China in January 2022.
Jonghun Lee, 38, pleaded guilty at the Laval courthouse on Nov. 18 to charges of forgery and smuggling after border officers intercepted a parcel from China in January 2022.
The package contained 509 blank counterfeit permanent resident cards and 506 blank counterfeit Alberta driver’s licences.
A search of Lee’s home weeks later then uncovered a trove of document-forging equipment, partially finished fake IDs, and close to $140,000 in Canadian and U.S. cash.
The CBSA said it also seized printing presses for counterfeit money, computers, and cellphones.
“Our government is determined to counter fraud and identity theft and bring to justice those who engage in it,” said Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s Minister of Public Safety, in a statement. “To the CBSA officers involved in this investigation — thank you. Your efforts are instrumental to protecting the integrity of our immigration system.”
All counterfeit equipment, forged documents, and the money printing presses were taken to be destroyed, CBSA added.