RCMP arrest Cuban national trying to enter Canada by running across bridge from U.S.

The RCMP says officers arrested a Cuban national attempting to enter Canada from the United States by running across the Fort Erie International Railway Bridge that connects Ontario to New York.

The Mounties say their Niagara-on-the-Lake border integrity unit officers, with help from Ontario Provincial Police, arrested the individual last month under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

They say the person was taken to the Peace Bridge port of entry in Fort Erie for an assessment, deemed ineligible to enter Canada and was returned to the U.S. on the same day.

The RCMP says it maintains round-the-clock presence at the railway bridge where officers have arrested several people attempting to illegally enter Canada, but they were all eventually returned to the U.S.

The Mounties say the force is seeing "positive operational impact from new investments in law enforcement."

$1.3-billion plan to boost border security

Ottawa introduced $1.3 billion in spending in December's fall economic statement aimed at disrupting the flow of fentanyl and strengthening 24/7 surveillance of the Canada-U.S. border.

The federal government's announcement was in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threats.

At the time, Public Safety Minister David McGuinty said the government had already deployed 60 new drones and was setting up surveillance towers near the 8,891-kilometre border.