OTTAWA — The Osheaga music festival in Montreal faced chaos when rap artist Travis Scott arrived nearly 90 minutes late for his performance in 2018. Tens of thousands of attendees were frustrated and tired as they waited for the headliner to take the stage. “Sorry I’m late, I got held up at customs, you know how it is,” Scott told the crowd. He ultimately performed a shortened 40-minute set that began after the festival's strict 11 p.m. curfew.

Scott's late arrival was unprecedented for the festival, which had never experienced a headliner arriving so late and then exceeding the curfew, a violation that could incur fines. Many fans left the venue before Scott began his performance. Shortly after the event, a festivalgoer filed a class action lawsuit against the festival organizer, Evenko, but the case was dismissed by a judge. Both Scott and the festival attributed the delays to issues at the Canadian border.

A recent arbitration tribunal decision has revealed more details about the events that led to the disruption. Scott landed at a private terminal in Montreal just 45 minutes before his scheduled performance. An off-duty Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) officer, André Rossin-Arthiat, interfered with the customs process, contributing to the delays.

The tribunal confirmed Rossin-Arthiat's firing for his actions on the day of the concert. He was working off-duty as a bodyguard for an unidentified celebrity traveling with Scott. Although the ruling does not name Scott directly, it indicates that he was the “high-profile musician” involved in the incident on August 3, 2018.

According to the tribunal, Scott's plane arrived at 9 p.m. for a 9:45 p.m. performance. The adjudicator, Amélie Lavictoire, noted that “time was of the essence.” The plane had been flagged for additional screening due to a previous incident involving cannabis. Rossin-Arthiat, who carried his CBSA badge, entered the plane after customs agents had boarded, which is against protocol.

He misrepresented himself to the on-duty agents, claiming the passengers were his friends and had already been cleared for entry. However, this was false. Samy Ait-Kadi, one of the border agents, stated that Rossin-Arthiat's interference prompted them to conduct a thorough search of the aircraft, which took about 90 minutes.

During the search, Ait-Kadi recognized Scott after seeing social media posts about the musician's tardiness. Following the incident, media reports and social media expressed frustration over Scott's late arrival and the shortened concert.

Five days later, CBSA suspended Rossin-Arthiat without pay and initiated an investigation into his conduct. The investigation revealed that he had multiple undisclosed jobs while employed by CBSA. In 2020, he was terminated for both the August 3 incident and for failing to disclose his freelance bodyguard work.

Rossin-Arthiat contested his firing, admitting his wrongdoing but arguing that the punishment was excessive. The tribunal found that he had repeatedly violated CBSA's code of conduct and lacked judgment and integrity. The decision stated that he acted to benefit his client at the expense of CBSA's interests.

CBSA spokesperson Rebecca Purdy stated that the agency supports the tribunal's decision, emphasizing that abuse of authority will not be tolerated. Neither Rossin-Arthiat nor the festival organizer responded to requests for comment.