This Canadian Tire store on Columbia Ave had me falsely arrested at the US Border on my first day of a ski-vacation with my kid. I was forced to leave my car at the closed border, taken in a cop car to the Castlegar station and photographed and fingerprinted. All this time, the Customs agents at the border, as well as the policeman could not even tell me WHY I was being arrrested! All they could say was that the almighty GOD of the Castlegar Canadian Tire ordered it, and that was GOOD ENOUGH FOR THEM!!!! Can you believe this? Finally, 3 hours after being detained at the border and processed like a common criminal, the very nice, polite and understanding Trail, BC policeman (really, he did the best he could, was polite and only doing what CT God and his job required), finally told me that CT claimed I paid only 14.00 for a 29.00 frying pan, and they assumed I had somehow changed the pricing on it, and without a SHRED of evidence to this claim, the tremendously INEPT Castlegar RCMP bought this crap and put out a warrant for me back in October 2012. (arrested DEC 20, 2012!) I was forced to spend almost a thousand dollars extra for hotel fees over the next month as our ski trip was ruined, and I had to make 3 court appearances before a sharp-eyed judge finally actually looked at the Mickey Mouse Discovery of the case and saw there was not a SINGLE PHOTO, VIDEO OR EYEWITNESS DOCUMENTATION of me changing a price tag. I was buying the cookware to donate to the local Tree of Sharing for the holiday giveaways to poor families in my area. If ANYONE knows of an excellent attorney who will take this case without up front fees, I plan on suing. I was over the next 3 months searched in front of my child EVERY single time we crossed the border by both US AND BC customs agents, I was photographed and flagged for harassment with same, I was told in front of my child by one BC Customs agent at the Selkirk/Nelway crossing that "When they find you guilty, you won't be crossing anymore!" I was detained and questioned by a FEDERAL agent at the Trail border crossing into the US! I now am embarrassed to show my face at either side of the border because of the photo and flagging me as a criminal, which they won't erase despite the proving of my innocence and dismissal of the charges. I want the police photos destroyed as well as the border photo. I was very sick and very tired and travelling the night I was put through this hell, it cost me thousands of dollars and embarrassment among Customs agents I had smiled with and whom just waved me through prior to this horror. And it is all due to a woman named Mrs. Saary whom owns this store INSISTING to the hapless and obviously unable to read or watch a video of customers before ordering a warrant Castlegar officer, hot to bust a mother for something without a shred of evidence. I am SICK just reliving it here.
