Ontario news — the Canada Border Services Agency has taken 53 firearms off the street in the Essex County Firearms Bust, charging 60-year-old Frank Charette of Cottam with 10 counts after a lengthy investigation into a cross-border weapons smuggling operation, the agency announced on September 24, 2026.
By Maplestime News Desk | Toronto, Ontario | September 25, 2026
Sources: Canada.ca / CBSA, newswire.ca | Last updated: September 25, 2026
Key Takeaways
- The CBSA’s Ontario Firearms Smuggling Enforcement Team (OFSET) arrested Frank Charette, 60, of Cottam, Ontario, on multiple firearm-related charges announced September 24, 2026.
- Charette was allegedly conspiring to smuggle firearm parts from the United States to manufacture prohibited weapons, and was intercepted at the Ambassador Bridge in May 2026 carrying unregulated firearm parts.
- On July 15, 2026, OFSET — working with the RCMP’s National Weapons Enforcement Support Team and the OPP’s Emergency Response Team — executed multiple search warrants in Essex County, seizing 53 firearms.
- Charette faces 10 counts including smuggling controlled goods, importing goods without a permit, manufacturing a prohibited firearm, and conspiracy to manufacture a firearm. His court date is set for November 16, 2026 at the Windsor courthouse.
Inside the Essex County Firearms Bust Investigation
The Essex County Firearms Bust began after a previous CBSA firearm case led to charges against another Windsor-area individual in September 2025. That trail led OFSET to Charette, who investigators allege was conspiring to smuggle firearm parts across the border with the goal of manufacturing prohibited weapons right here in Canada.
Charette was intercepted at the Ambassador Bridge in May 2026 carrying unregulated firearm parts — the kind of parts that, assembled the wrong way, turn a legal firearm into something very illegal. The investigation then moved to the execution phase.
What Was Seized on July 15
The search warrants executed across Essex County on July 15, 2026 turned up a haul that should worry anyone living near the border:
- 53 firearms seized in total
- Six unlawfully possessed handguns
- Two unregistered sub-machine guns
- 116 cartridge magazines, 39 of them over capacity
- One auto-sear — a device that converts a semi-automatic firearm to fully automatic
The 10 Charges Against Frank Charette
Charette faces 10 counts: Smuggling Controlled Goods under the Customs Act, Importing Goods Without a Permit, Manufacture of a Prohibited Firearm, Conspiracy to Manufacture a Firearm, plus additional possession and storage offences. He is scheduled to appear at the Windsor courthouse on November 16, 2026.
What the CBSA Is Saying
Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree pointed to the case as proof the system works: “I have seen first-hand how the CBSA works to keep illegal firearms from entering Canada and threatening the safety of our communities…”
Fair enough — 53 fewer guns on the street is a win. But the Essex County Firearms Bust also tells a harder story: the pipeline is active, the parts were crossing at the busiest border point in the country, and manufacturing prohibited weapons on Canadian soil was the endgame. Catching one 60-year-old in Cottam is good police work. The question is how many shipments made it through before May.
Maplestime will provide updates on the Essex County Firearms Bust as announcements are made, including the November 16, 2026 court appearance.
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Fifty-three guns seized — but how many shipments slipped through before the CBSA caught on? Tell us in the comments. And share this with every Canadian who lives near the border and deserves to know what’s crossing it.
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