Jaswinder Singh was convicted before a federal court in Utica, New York. (Representative picture)
New York:
An Indian Uber driver was sentenced to one year in prison for illegally entering the United States from the Canadian border, officials said.
30-year-old Jaswinder Singh, who had been granted asylum in the United States, was sentenced on Thursday by Judge David Hurd to a federal court in Utica, New York. He may have to be deported, said Attorney Grant Jaquith.
He admitted to picking up and transporting several illegal cross-border commuters for payments between January and May 2019, the Ministry of Justice said.
He was arrested last May while on the spot near the Canadian border to receive a $ 2,200 payment for an adult and child who illegally crossed.
In contrast to the country's southern border with Mexico, the 8,840 km long US border with Canada is largely open and lightly guarded.
Canadian and US citizens can enter each other's country without a visa, although they would need a work permit to work.
Citizens of other countries, such as India, who are not eligible for the U.S. visa-free entry programs, require visas to enter Canada from America.
Only a small number of people come from Canada illegally, but they are increasing and nearly doubling to 963 in 2018, according to the U.S. government, in 2018.
