The Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service and Saint-Régis Mohawk Tribal Police had noted an increase in illegal entry into Akwesasne by land and sea.
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“We want to remind the community that human smuggling is a crime and raises serious concerns not just for the person committing the act but for the entire Akwesasne community,” the Mohawk Police Department Akwesasne wrote in a Facebook post last month February .
As recently as January 23, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service had received complaints from suspects in the Third Street area of the village of Saint-Régis (Kana:takon).
When officers were present, they located and arrested four people who were identified as foreigners. Your files were then sent to Immigration Canada.
It would therefore not be the first time that police have warned the population about the illegal arrival of migrants through this indigenous territory, which stretches across Quebec, Ontario and upstate New York.
Additionally, Akwesasne’s Mohawk Police Service urged residents of the area to report the arrival of migrants by both land and sea, as it poses a threat not only to the safety of the migrants, but that of the community as well represents Akwesasne.
A situation that is not new
The owner of a private marina on the Saint-Regis Canal in Montérégie saw firefighters, ambulances and police officers recovering at least five or six bodies from a swamp near his home Thursday night.
The latter also explained that he had recently seen boats docking at his property, dropping off people and that a car came quickly to pick them up.
However, according to his words, he has repeatedly reported these passages in his house to the authorities. He even asked for surveillance cameras to be installed on his property.
He argues that these passages are not safe for these people crossing the Saint Lawrence River in very cold weather.