Search Continues for Man Whose Boat was Found Near Bodies of Eight Migrants

Akwesasne Mohawk Police are still searching for Casey Oakes, the man whose boat was found where the bodies of eight immigrants were recovered from the St. Lawrence River. It has been four days now since the first body was discovered, after which the police recovered seven more bodies, including two children.

On Thursday, March 30, a body was recovered around 5 p.m. in a marsh in Tsi Snaihne in Akwesasne, a Mohawk territory right between the US-Canada border. Akwesasne Mohawk Police and Canadian Coast Guard then recovered seven more bodies and out of the eight victims, two were children. The police also found the boat in which the eight people were allegedly trying to cross into the US illegally.

Officials found that the boat belonged to 30-year-old Casey Oakes who was last seen on Wednesday night operating a boat that was found next to the migrants’ bodies. Furthermore, some items of clothing belonging to Oakes have also been found. As of now, no direct connection has been made between Oakes and the deaths. The search for Oakes continues into the fourth day.

The police shared that the eight victims included two families, one of Romanian descent and the other of Indian descent. Two of the migrants were identified as Cristina (Monalisa) Zenaida Lordache and Florin Lordache, both 28 years old. They were carrying Canadian passports for two young children who were among the victims.

The identities of the Indian family have not been revealed yet and the next of kin have not been informed. It is believed that the two families were trying to illegally cross into the US through the St Lawrence River which straddles Quebec, Ontario, and New York state.

Vineet Washington