Bed bugs detected at CRA office building in Toronto

Bed bugs have been detected at a Toronto office building used by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and other government agencies.

CRA Senior Communications Advisor Paul Murphy confirmed on Friday the presence of bed bugs at the Greater Toronto Area East Tax Services Office site located at 200 Town Centre Court in Scarborough.

“In response, the CRA has implemented an integrated pest management strategy, which includes regular canine inspections and installation of monitors on each CRA-occupied floor,” Murphy said in a statement. “Whenever bed bug presence is confirmed, the affected area receives immediate after-hours treatment.”

The government agency said the floors of the building occupied by CRA are not accessible to the public and employees have been notified of the discovery and subsequent treatment.

CTV News Toronto contacted Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), which also uses the building and includes a public-facing Service Canada location, to see if it has also been affected by the infestation.

In response, ESDC directed CTV News Toronto to Public Services and Procurement Canada, which oversees pest management services in parts of the building.

“In the case of 200 Town Centre Court, PSPC is responsible for pest management services in certain areas of the building and has offered ongoing pest monitoring to all federal tenants, which they currently have implemented,” a spokesperson for the department said in a statement.

This isn’t the only recent instance bed bugs were spotted in Toronto, as a bed bug was caught on video crawling across the TTC’s fabric subway seats in mid-October.