Indians among eight found dead near US-Canada border
1 min read 01 Apr 2023, 05:53 AM ISTThe police said that the bodies are those of six adults and two children-one under the age of three who had a Canadian passport
PremiumEight people have been found dead in Canada as they tried to cross the St Lawrence River into the United States near Akwesasne. According to CBS News, the bodies are those of six adults and two children-one under the age of three who had a Canadian passport, the other an infant who was also a Canadian citizen.
The news media added the bodies are believed to have been an Indian family and a Romanian family who were attempting to cross into the US.
Police located Oakes's vessel near the bodies.
They were found in a marsh on the riverbank. The IDs of the victims have not yet been released, pending notification of their next of kin.
The local police said that a storm brought high winds and sleet into the area and that could have caused the tragedy. Besides, the boat carrying them could be small and could not load the weight of seven or eight people.
It is not the first time that a search operation for missing people was conducted who have tried to cross the border.
The theofficials rescue people attempting to enter the US or Canada over the river and its tributaries about three or four times a year.
Almost exactly a year ago, they rescued a group of six Indian nationals who had just made it into America on the river when the boat they were in hit a shallow bank and got stuck.
Smuggling on the rise at the US-Canada border:
Police told CBS News that they have seen an uptick in human smuggling into the US. There have been 48 incidents so far this year. However, the recent deaths had nothing to do with the closure of the Roxham Road illegal border crossing.
The police officer said most who try to enter the US through the area are Indian and Romanian families and added, "had no idea" why that was the case.
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol stated they have seen more than eight times as many people try to cross from Canada into the US in 2022 compared to previous years. More than 64,000 --came through Quebec or Ontario into New York, it added.
