Help us keep guns out of Mississauga and Brampton, Peel police tell Ottawa

Peel police are pushing the federal government to strengthen Canada’s borders in order to stop the constant flow of illegal guns into Mississauga and Brampton — and other Ontario communities — from the U.S.

While they applauded Ottawa’s recent move to beef up border security to curb drug trafficking, members of the Peel Police Service Board insist Canada must also take strong and immediate action to keep guns out of communities on this side of the border.

Peel Regional Police top brass have long pounded the table for additional measures to stop the huge number of illegal guns from making their way into Ontario from various places in the U.S.

“Policing today requires a coordinated, intelligence-led approach to combat organized crime and the trafficking of both drugs and firearms,” Peel police Chief Nishan Duraiappah said in a news release on Thursday.

Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah stressed the importance of keeping both illegal drugs and guns out of Peel and other communities across Canada.

Nando Iannicca, chair of the Peel Police Service Board, the civilian-led body that oversees the regional police force, said the safety of Peel and Canadian communities “depends on a comprehensive approach” to border security.

“While we strongly support the federal government’s recent steps to curb illicit drug trafficking, we must ensure that firearms smuggling receives the same level of attention,” he said in the news release. “The majority of gun crimes in Canada involve illegal firearms smuggled across the border and we cannot afford to overlook this issue. Peel is ready to support and partner with the federal government in any way necessary to strengthen these efforts.”

In December, Duraiappah told the community his officers recovered a “staggering” 205 illegal guns in 2024 (one every 36 hours), an increase of more than 60 from 2023. The guns were connected to 147 shootings in Mississauga and Brampton last year, a 72 per cent hike from the previous year.

The vast majority of the 205 illegal firearms — in fact, nearly all of them, police say — originated south of the border and were smuggled into Ontario.

Nando Iannicca, chair of the Peel Police Service Board, said “we must ensure that firearms smuggling receives the same level of attention” as drug smuggling.

Last July, police in Peel revealed details of a largest-ever bust in which 69 of 71 guns — 67 handguns, four assault-style rifles — that were confiscated had been smuggled into Ontario from the U.S. Investigators said at the time they believed the weapons were destined for use in home invasions, carjackings and other violent crimes in Mississauga, Brampton and across the GTA.

Peel police also noted earlier that nearly 100 per cent of carjackings and home invasions in Peel are carried out using illegal guns that have been smuggled into Canada from south of the border.

In a letter sent Thursday to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Minister of Public Safety David McGuinty and Minister of Justice Arif Virani, the police board in Peel urged Ottawa to expand its border security efforts to include stronger measures targeting the flow of illegal firearms into Canada.

The board also highlighted the “urgent need to disrupt firearms smuggling.”

The letter also outlined “an opportunity to partner with the federal government and the Canadian Armed Forces by offering operational support as part of Peel Regional Police’s ongoing efforts to enhance policing capabilities, including the acquisition of a new hangar facility,” the Peel police news release said.