A family, including a baby and a teenager, found frozen to death between Canada and the United States


The bodies of four people, including a baby and a teenager, were found on Wednesday a few meters from the Canada-US border in the center, on a road used by migrants, Canadian police said Thursday. “Our initial findings lead us to believe that they would all have died of hypothermia,” detailed the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The bodies of the victims were discovered “about 12 meters from the Canada-US border”, 10 kilometers east of Emerson (Manitoba, central).

Shortly before, in the morning, American border agents had apprehended a group of people who had just crossed the border. One of the group was carrying baby items but no babies were in the group.

“He claimed he was carrying the backpack for a family of four Indian nationals who had walked with the group previously but had become separated overnight,” the US Department of Justice said in a statement.

Abandoned in the middle of the blizzard at about -35°C, taking into account the wind

A search was then immediately launched on both sides of the border. After four hours of excavations in very difficult conditions, the first bodies were discovered. “The lifeless bodies have been tentatively identified as those of the family of four who had been separated” from the group, the statement continued.

The US Department of Justice also announced that it had arrested a 47-year-old American during a traffic stop. The man, from Florida, was driving a van with two undocumented Indian nationals on board, near where the group of migrants were arrested, and was charged with human trafficking.

At a press conference, Manitoba Assistant Commissioner Jane MacLatchy said it was likely that the deceased “were left alone in the middle of the blizzard when it was about -35°C, taking into account the wind “.

“Insurmountable”

She said the victims found themselves in the middle of the night facing huge fields covered with a heavy layer of snow, which was “insurmountable” on foot. The police had to use snowmobiles and other all-terrain vehicles to search the area.

In recent years, the small town of Emerson has become one of the routes used by migrants between the two North American countries. Jane MacLatchy notes that attempts to cross had been less frequent for a year, marked by a closure of the border due to the Covid pandemic.



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