A Canadian man claims that US border agents had him barred from the country for five years because they thought he would take American jobs.
Kyle Kuchirka, 25, attempted to cross the American border Aug. 29 to volunteer at a music festival when he was denied entry into the United States, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
The set designer from Saskatoon told US border agents he was en route to volunteer at the Sh’Bang Art Festival in Washington.
This prompted four hours of questioning, which resulted in Kuckirka receiving a document claiming he doesn’t “have work authorization” in the US.
The document also said he’s banned from entering the country for five years.
The recent college graduate tried to plead his case, telling authorities he was only being paid with free meals.
But the border agents didn’t budge, he said.
A guard instead returned Kuckirka’s passport to him with “ordered removed” handwritten on a page, the report said.
US Customs and Border Protection said in a statement to CBC News that they don’t discuss individual cases. They noted there are a variety of reasons for five-year travel bans.
A lawyer who spoke to the outlet, Len Saunders, said Kuckirka and other Canadians who’ve been turned away at the border faced “expedited removals.”
Saunders explained that the procedures are implemented at the discretion of the immigration officers, without a judge.
“Until recently, I never would have expected people to get these expedited removals so randomly,” Saunders told the outlet.
“It’s very, very indiscriminate how they are doing this.”