Illegal crossings at US-Canada border drop — but enforcement shrinks: ‘Opportunity for terrorists’

US officials are pleading for help at the Canadian border, claiming the “most dangerous people are coming through” the largely unchecked crossing.

The number of illegal entries from the often-overlooked northern border have plummeted since President Trump’s election in November, but the gains have mostly stalled in recent months as Customs and Border Patrol has turned its full attention to Mexico.

“They had to shift manpower to the southwest border which opened up an even greater opportunity for terrorists to come through our northern border,” said Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA), who co-chairs the Northern Border Security Caucus.

“The numbers aren’t as big as the southern border — I get that, but the most dangerous people are coming through the northern border.”

Crossings from the Great White North into the US are down from the 12,085 illegals nabbed in November to 4,098 caught in February, a 66% drop, the latest available data from CBP showed.

As CBP redeployed border patrol agents and resources to the southern border, the numbers coming over the border with Canada have dropped.

February’s numbers reflect a major drop — 78% — from a peak of 18,944 captured entering the US illegally in August.

It’s a stark contrast to the US-Mexico border, which has seen a stunning drop of more than 90% in illegal crossings, from a peak of 301,981 in December 2023 to 11,709 in February.

The northern border is the largest land border in the world, spanning more than 5,500 miles of wilderness and largely unguarded territory outside of official border-crossing points.

But it lacked the attention that the US-Mexico border routinely gets, until it became the subject of a brewing trade war between the northern neighbors.

The Post recently reported on Canadian coyotes brazenly advertising illegal border crossings on TikTok, offering help in exchange for a few thousand dollars. Residents living alongside the Canadian border have also testified how often they see people just walk right into the US. 

“That border is so easy to access and to get through, all you have to do is go from one piece of grass to the next piece of grass,” said Kelly. “You just step over a line to get to the United States.”

North of the border, Canadian Mounties are also dealing with limited resources to patrol the wide swath of space between the neighboring countries.

“The varied terrain and unpredictable climate at the vast Canada-US border can certainly present challenges on both sides,” the Royal Canadian Mounted Police told The Post.

The RCMP said it had brought in additional resources, including officers, drones and Black Hawk helicopters in recent months, and had repositioned members to areas that attract illegal crossings.