The Trump administration’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) thugs are completely out of control — and there are Canadian companies who are profiting from this vicious agency.
After ICE gunned down yet another person for the crime of standing up to their abuses, I got angry. When I get angry, I research. So I tracked down Canadian companies who have open or recent contracts with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security — in other words, the Canadians pocketing profits from this mass deportation campaign.
Several of these used the U.S. branches of their companies as their listed address on the USASpending website, which hid them from maps circulating that plot Canadian companies profiting from ICE’s cruelty.
Here they are.
Garda (aka GardaWorld)
What? This Canadian security company, based in Montreal, was contracted for work on the Florida detention centre dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.”
How much? At least US$8 million, plus the $250 minimum obligation for the task order allowing it to participate in the sourcing vehicle for “emergency detention and related services for aliens in immigration and customs enforcement custody in response to the border emergency.”
Canadian government money? Yes, the Canadian government has granted millions of dollars worth of contracts to Garda and its related companies.
Response? Garda did not respond to a request for comment.
JSI Telecom
What? JSI Telecom is an Ottawa tech company that, as first reported by The Logic’s David Reevely, provides wiretapping tools to ICE.
How much? At least US$7.3 million, with a total $23.4 million potential award amount. According to the contract summary on the U.S. government’s website, the contract deals with “purchase operations and maintenance support for homeland security investigations,” including the “digital collection system used for court-ordered wiretaps of electronic communication to assist in (investigations).” In other words, wiretaps.
Canadian government money? Yes. Reevely reported for The Logic that Canada’s AI Minister Evan Solomon forked over $1 million to JSI in December to “help it commercialize AI products for law enforcement.” His office confirmed this subsidy in a request for comment.
Response? JSI Telecom did not respond to a request for comment.
Hootsuite
What? Vancouver-based Hootsuite Inc. has a pilot project underway with ICE which, according to exclusive reporting from The Globe and Mail’s Sean Silcoff and Joe Castaldo, has seen the company have discussions of “monitoring conversations and sentiment on social media related to the agencies, including talk of ICE enforcement actions in specific cities and public perception of the (Customs and Border Protection) commissioner.” On top of that, Seneca Strategic Partners LLC has a contract with DHS for “social media management platform Hootsuite and support services.”
How much? The pilot project is worth US$95,000, according to the Globe. The Seneca Strategic Partners contract has a current award amount of US$1.1 million, with a potential award amount of US$2.8 million.
Canadian government money? Yes, though the government hasn’t awarded Hootsuite any contracts over CAD$10,000 since 2022, according to a brief search of the proactive disclosure website.
Response? Hootsuite did not respond to a request for comment.
Roshel
What? Brampton-based Roshel had a contract to sell 20 armoured vehicles to ICE that can stop .50-calibre rounds and protect its passengers from bomb blasts.
How much? The contract, which has been fully awarded according to the USASpending website, was worth US$7.2 million.
Canadian government money? Not since a single $324,000 contract in 2019. However after Industry Minister Melanie Joly encouraged Canadian companies to take advantage of increased spending to meet NATO targets, Roshel registered to lobby the federal government.
Response? Roshel did not respond to a request for comment.
Thomson Reuters
What? Headquartered in Toronto, the technology and media giant has three active contracts with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. One, awarded in 2021, covers a “law enforcement investigative database subscription. Another, awarded in 2023, is for “risk mitigation services.” A third, awarded in 2025, is for a “maritime analysis tool” and “subject matter expert support services to the support the homeland security investigations, operation national initiative for illicit trade enforcement program.”
How much? The 2021 contract is worth US$22.8 million. The 2023 contract has seen Thomson Reuters awarded US$2.7 million to date, and has a potential award amount of US$4.6 million. The 2025 contract has so far garnered the media giant US$1.8 million, with a potential award amount of $3.6 million. Together, the three contracts are worth a potential US$31 million.
Canadian government money? Yes. Thomson Reuters has received hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal government contracts since 2022, largely for subscriptions, data and database access services.
Response? Thomson Reuters did not respond to a request for comment.
Jim Pattison Developments
What? This one is a bit different from the others, as it hasn’t gone through yet — the Department of Homeland Security is reportedly in the process of trying to buy a Virginia warehouse that B.C. billionaire Jim Pattison’s Jim Pattison Developments has owned since 2022. Should the proposal go through, ICE would “occupy and rehabilitate” the warehouse “in support of ICE operations.” The news has prompted calls — most notably from the BC Green Party Leader Emily Lowan — for boycotts of Jim Pattison’s companies, including Save-On-Foods, Quality Foods, and more.
How much? It’s unclear how much the property would be purchased for, but records show Pattison purchased the property in 2022 for CAD$10.4 million.
Canadian government money? Yes. The federal government has granted several contracts to Jim Pattison’s various ventures in recent years, including for vehicles, office buildings and more.
Response? Jim Pattison Developments did not respond to a request for comment. However, on Wednesday, Jim Pattison Group shared a statement with several media outlets claiming that while they had accepted an offer to sell the building to a U.S. government contractor, they weren’t aware of the “ultimate owner” until “some time later.”
“This transaction is still subject to certain approvals and closing conditions. We remain committed to complying with all applicable laws and regulations as we work to divest this asset,” the statement read, according to Global News.
Magnet Forensics
What? Waterloo-based Magnet Forensics has at least seven active contracts with the Department of Homeland Security. This includes ICE subscriptions to Magnet Forensics’s Graykey technology, a phone hacking and unlocking device, for “iOS and Android extractions of electronic devices for law enforcement investigations, for ICE homeland security investigations Detroit.”
How much? Of the seven active contracts with DHS listed on USASpending, five are specifically given to ICE. The other two, still under the DHS umbrella, are for Customs and Border Protection and the Secret Service. The seven contracts add up to more than US$3.6 million. The Secret Service contract makes up US$2.7 million of that sum — and that contract has a potential award amount of US$12.1 million. TechCrunch also reported in September that ICE had signed a contract worth $3 million for Magnet Forensics software licenses. USASpending lists the recipient of this contract as PanAmerica Computers Inc., a Magnet partner, but acknowledges in the description that this contract “is for Magnet Forensics software licenses used by homeland security investigations to recover digital evidence, process multiple devices, (and) generate forensic reports essential to (the) mission of protecting national security and public.”
Canadian government money? Yes. Last year alone, the Canadian government awarded Magnet Forensics more than CAD$1 million in contracts.
Response? Magnet Forensics did not respond to a request for comment.
ICOR Technology Inc.
What? Ottawa-based Icor Technology Inc. has one active contract with ICE. The agency bought a “mini-caliber tactical robot” for “law enforcement operations to support ICE - office of firearms and tactical programs.”
How much? The contract, which has been fully awarded according to the USASpending website, is worth just over US$77,000.
Canadian government money? Yes. In the last year alone, the Canadian government has awarded Icor Technology Inc. more than CAD$200,000 in contracts.
Response? Icor Technology did not respond to a request for comment.
CGI Inc.
What? Montreal-based CGI Inc., founded in the 1970s in Quebec City, is one of the largest IT firms in the world — and they’ve got the U.S. government contracts to prove it. The company’s U.S. based arm, CGI Federal, has 15 active contracts under the DHS umbrella. Of those, two are specifically with ICE, providing what appears to be their asset management software service.
How much? The two active contracts ICE has awarded to CGI Federal add up to just over US$319,000. If we include the potential award amount, that figure balloons to more than US$460,000. Adding in all 15 DHS related contracts, CGI Federal is raking in more than US$104.5 million — in active contracts alone.
Canadian government money? Yes. The government has awarded CGI nearly CAD$8 million in contracts in the last year alone.
Response? CGI Inc. did not respond to a request for comment.
BONUS: ATCO Frontec is NOT profiting from ICE!
What? Calgary-based ATCO Frontec shows up on a widely-shared map that claims to show companies working with ICE. The relevant listing is extremely vague, and related information indicates it’s a Department of Defense “Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity” contract, specifically awarded through the Navy. In September, CNN reported that DHS was funnelling US$10 billion through the Navy “to help facilitate the construction of a sprawling network of migrant detention centres across the US.”
How much? The description suggests the contract could run up to US$10 billion — though the award profile states no money has changed hands.
Response? ATCO responded to my request for comment and clarified that they are simply an approved vendor for the U.S. Navy. Despite the change in the scope of what they’re approved to bid on (that’s what CNN covered), they have no intent to bid on ICE-related contracts.
“We have seen some incorrect reporting today of ATCO having a $10M project or $20B contract to build ICE camps. This is 100% incorrect. ATCO is an approved vendor for the U.S. Navy that allows us to bid on contracts, under the WEXMAC contracting and procurement vehicle,” the ATCO Media Team explained.
“We have not, and do not, intend to bid on any ICE detention contracts - our priority is the provision of services to the U.S. military within U.S. bases, in training exercises and to disaster response efforts. ATCO does have a long and proud history of supporting Canada's Department of National Defence, the Canadian Armed Forces, and defence-related work with NATO countries, including the U.S.”
That’s all for now!
I’ll keep my eyes peeled for any major developments on Canadian companies working with ICE or the broader DHS mass deportation agenda.
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