Justice Watch: Justice Jennifer Bezaire throws out $13M cocaine case over 'degrading' strip search and Charter breaches
Justice Bezaire concluded the violations reflected broader institutional failures within the Canada Border Services Agency rather than isolated mistakes by individual officers.
A Windsor judge has stayed a major cocaine importation prosecution after finding Canada Border Services Agency officers repeatedly violated a man's Charter rights, even though the officers were initially acting under existing CBSA procedures after the agency had already flagged the accused for suspected tobacco smuggling.
In a decision released May 22, 2026, Justice Jennifer Bezaire stayed all charges against Harinder Singh Saini, who had been accused of importing more than 120 kilograms of cocaine through the Ambassador Bridge in October 2023. The cocaine, estimated to have a street value of between $10.8 million and $13.2 million, was seized by border officers before it entered Canada.
Justice Jennifer Bezaire https://t.co/xwQ22dML1Q
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) July 15, 2026
According to the ruling, Saini was referred for secondary inspection after CBSA's own lookout system flagged him for potential tobacco smuggling. During the inspection, officers discovered bundles of Canadian cash before conducting additional searches that ultimately uncovered the cocaine hidden inside his transport trailer.
However, Justice Bezaire found that before the drugs were discovered, officers committed seven separate Charter violations that rendered the prosecution an abuse of process.
"The harm to the system in allowing the trial to proceed in the face of the egregious Charter violations far outweighs the seriousness of these offences," Bezaire wrote. "The violations are also the result of a systemic problem, such that I find that the only remedy capable of redressing the harm is a stay of proceedings."
While the officers were following CBSA's strip-search policy then in effect, Justice Bezaire found that policy itself failed to comply with longstanding Supreme Court of Canada jurisprudence.
The judge reserved her strongest criticism for the strip search.
"[The BSOs] approached the strip search without any regard for whether it was necessary in the circumstances," she wrote.
"The mere possibility that an individual may be concealing evidence is not sufficient to justify a strip search; there must be something more."
Justice Bezaire found officers forced Saini to become completely naked even though there was no reasonable basis to believe he was concealing evidence on his body.
"I find that the officers conducted the strip search in the most degrading and humiliating manner. It was wholly unnecessary for them to require Mr. Saini to be completely naked," she ruled.
The officers also failed to obtain supervisory approval before conducting the strip search and failed to document the reasons for it. The court further found Saini's Charter rights were violated when officers continued questioning him after he requested legal counsel and delayed his opportunity to speak with a lawyer before carrying out the strip search.
Justice Bezaire concluded the violations reflected broader institutional failures within the Canada Border Services Agency rather than isolated mistakes by individual officers.
She noted CBSA's strip-search policy in effect in October 2023 required complete disrobing despite the Supreme Court of Canada's 2001 decision in R. v. Golden, which established strict constitutional limits on strip searches because of their intrusive and degrading nature.
"CBSA should have long since updated its policy and the officers should have long since been made aware of the requirements of Golden," Bezaire wrote.
Although CBSA formally revised its strip-search policy in July 2024, Justice Bezaire noted both officers testified during the hearing that they were unaware of the updated policy, suggesting the changes had not been effectively implemented in practice.
While acknowledging it was "somewhat comforting" that the cocaine never reached Canadian streets, Justice Bezaire concluded the integrity of the justice system required the prosecution to be halted.
Defence lawyer Rafik Kodsy welcomed the ruling, telling CTV News that constitutional protections apply regardless of the seriousness of the allegations.
"Regardless of the nature of the charge itself, regardless of how serious the charge is, our Charter rights are paramount, and the courts are here to protect our Charter rights," Kodsy said.
In a statement to CTV News, CBSA said it is reviewing the ruling. The agency said officers receive training on strip searches, Charter requirements and CBSA policies, adding that treating travellers with "respect, dignity, and fairness" remains fundamental while protecting Canada's borders.
Sheila Gunn Reid
Chief Reporter
Sheila Gunn Reid is the Editor-in-Chief, Alberta Bureau Chief, member of the board of directors, and host of The Gunn Show at Rebel News. Sheila also serves as President of the Independent Press Gallery of Canada. A mother of three and longtime conservative activist, Sheila is the author of bestselling books, including her most recent release, Independence Blueprint: What Alberta Can Learn From Quebec.
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COMMENTS
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Fran g commented 2026-07-19 20:00:38 -0400Woke judges need to be fired, but they are friends of corrupt liberals like carnage etc. -
Bruce Atchison commented 2026-07-15 19:29:35 -0400Degrading or not, feelings aren’t facts. People breaking the law should expect strip searches. I’m one person who’s tired of people misusing the law to get paid for the consequences of their lawlessness.
