Ottawa, Canada

Canadian authorities recovered eight bodies from the St. Lawrence River near Akwesasne, amoung them are bodies of two families, one of Romanian descent and the other of Indian citizens. Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service Deputy Chief Lee-Ann O’Brien said the people were likely trying to enter the United States illegally from Canada. 

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In a presser, Lee-Ann O’Brien earlier said there were five adults and one child. Later, a police helicopter retrieved two more bodies in the St Lawrence River Friday. One child belonged to a Romanian family, she said.

A Canadian passport was also recovered from the child, as per the police. To identify the cause of death, authorities are awaiting the results of an autopsy and toxicology tests, as per reports. 

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The bodies, as per reports, were recovered in a marsh area Thursday during an aerial search with the Canadian Coast Guard. The bodies were found in Tsi Snaihne (Snye), a Mohawk territory in Akwesasne, a region that borders Quebec, Ontario, and New York state. The first body, according to the authorities, was found at about 5 pm. 

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The bodies were found as a consequence of a Thursday search for another missing individual, a 30-year-old Casey Oakes. Oakes was last seen Wednesday boarding a small, light blue vessel. The vessel was departing from the east end of Cornwall Island, in the St. Lawrence at the time of it was last seen with Oakes onboard it. 

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Later, the same vessel was discovered next to the six of the dead bodies. Police in Akwesasne were unable to confirm if Oakes had any links with the victims. Oakes is still missing. Around 120 kilometres west of Montreal, Akwesasne borders Cornwall, Ontario.

(With inputs from agencies)

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