Fort Erie man sentenced to three years for Peace Bridge drug smuggling
September 23, 2026 at 4:45 AM
A Fort Erie man has been sentenced to three years in a U.S. prison after methamphetamine and fentanyl were found in his luggage during a Peace Bridge inspection last year.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York, 57-year-old Eric Hagen was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara after being convicted of importing controlled substances.
Hagen pleaded guilty to the charge in May.
The case stems from August 1, 2025, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers encountered Hagen at the Peace Bridge port of entry and referred him for a secondary inspection.
According to prosecutors, officers found multiple cellphones, hard drives, a laptop and a baby monitor, along with two plastic containers containing methamphetamine and fentanyl.
Fort Erie Radio reported at the time that Hagen had travelled to the border from Fort Erie and was planning to continue from Buffalo to California.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also noted Hagen had been convicted in June 2024 of possessing child pornography in St. Catharines.
Niagara Regional Police had charged Hagen in 2023 with two counts of possession of child pornography and one count of accessing child pornography.
The drug case was investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations.
Assistant U.S. attorneys Michael J. Adler and Sasha Mascarenhas prosecuted the case.
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About The Author
Brent Jones
Program director, lead editor, and host, Fort Erie Radio; Realtor, eXp Realty; family man; lives in Ridgeway; proud to call the Town of Fort Erie home.
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