Authorities in a Canadian indigenous territory reported Friday that a child was missing after the bodies of six migrants of Indian and Romanian descent were pulled from a river that straddles the Canada-US border.
The victims were trying to enter the United States illegally from Canada, said Lee-Ann O’Brien, deputy chief of the Mohawk Territory Police in Akwesasne. Their bodies, including that of an infant under the age of three, were found Thursday in the St. Lawrence River near Akwesasne, Quebec.
O’Brien added that police found a Canadian passport belonging to a missing minor with the Romanian family, adding that the deceased child was also a Canadian citizen.
Weather conditions in the area were difficult on Wednesday night, he added.
“This is a heartbreaking situation, especially since the little boy was among them,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. “We need to properly understand what happened, how it happened, and do what we can to minimize the chances of this happening again.”
The Mohawk Police Department said the first body was located at approximately 5 p.m. in a swamp. A marine police unit searched the area further with the help of the Canadian Coast Guard and the Akwesasne Hogansburg Volunteer Fire Department.
It is also anticipated that there will be air support in the investigation by the Quebec Provincial Police and the Ontario Provincial Police. Autopsies and toxicology tests were ordered to determine the causes of deaths.
Akwesasne police reported that since January there have been 48 incidents of people attempting to cross into Canada or the United States through Mohawk territory without authorization. Most have been people of Indian or Romanian descent.
