Member of Deadly Human Smuggling Organization Extradited from Canada

A dual Canadian-American citizen made his initial appearance in court in Plattsburg, New York, today after being extradited from Canada to face charges relating to his role in a deadly human smuggling conspiracy that left a family of four, including two small children, dead in the St. Lawrence River. In June 2024, a federal grand jury in the Northern District of New York returned an indictment against Rahsontanohstha Delormier, also known as Storm, 31, of the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian Reservation (AMIR), Canada, for conspiring to engage in alien smuggling and four counts of alien smuggling for profit. According to court documents, Delormier was arrested in Canada in August 2024 along with co-conspirator Stephanie Square at the request of the U.S. government. Delormier’s and Square’s extraditions followed extensive coordination and cooperation between U.S. and Canadian law enforcement authorities. Square, 52, of the AMIR, was extradited in October 2025. Co-conspirator Timothy Oakes, 34, from the AMIR, was arrested on June 15 and remains detained pending trial for his role in the alleged deadly conspiracy. U.S.-based co-conspirators Dakota Montour, 31, and Kawisiiostha Celecia Sharrow, 43, both of the AMIR in New York, and Janet Terrance, 45, of Hogansburg, New York, entered guilty pleas on Jan. 23, 2025, Oct. 8, 2024 and March 6, 2025, respectively. According to court documents, Delormier was allegedly a member of an alien smuggling conspiracy which resulted in the deaths of eight migrants. As alleged, Delormier, a Native American Indian living on the Canadian portion of the AMIR — which overlaps the United States and Canada — was a known alien smuggler and smuggled aliens by boat utilizing the St. Lawrence River. The evidence establishes that during the week of March 27, 2023, a prolific Canadian smuggler contacted co-conspirators Sharrow and Square to smuggle a family of four across the St. Lawrence River into the United States. Both Square and Sharrow had previously moved aliens for the alien smuggling organization. Delormier was allegedly recruited by Square to assist in the movement of the aliens and agreed to enter the conspiracy despite the dangerous conditions on the St. Lawrence River. According to court documents, Delormier provided co-conspirator Montour access to a pickup truck to transport the aliens via roadways from mainland Cornwall to co-conspirator Oakes’ residence on Cornwall Island, Canada, which serves as a notorious staging area for smugglers to cross contraband and people across the river from Canada into the United States. Pursuant to surveillance footage and hotel records, Montour picked up the family of four, including two small children, from the Elect Inn in Cornwall, Canada on March 29, 2023, at approximately 3:21 a.m. On March 29, 2023, at 3:26 a.m., Montour crossed the Seaway International Bridge Toll Plaza onto Cornwall Island and then traveled on Island Road towards Buckshot Road and Timothy Oakes’s residence. According to court documents, while the aliens were in transit in Delormier’s pickup truck driven by Montour, Delormier was delivering a small green boat that Square had purchased to transport the aliens across the St. Lawrence River. Delormier assisted Square in picking up the boat and attempted to stage the boat for the aliens’ transportation. However, during Delormier’s attempt to stage the boat, Delormier lost control of the vessel and ended up stranded in the frigid St. Lawrence River. On March 30, 2023, at approximately mid-day, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service (AMPS) rescued Delormier from an abandoned cabin on St. Regis Island. Delormier was suffering from symptoms of hyperthermia. AMPS also recovered a submerged green boat with Delormier, which AMPS photographed and seized. The boat was identified by a cooperating witness as being the same boat sold to Square and Delormier earlier for the alien smuggling event. As alleged, undeterred by the loss of Delormier and the boat to the St. Lawrence River, Square recruited and paid Oakes to transport the aliens across the St. Lawrence River in his small boat. The family of four arrived at the Oakes’s residence on March 29, 2023, at approximately 3:35 a.m. and stayed until that same evening. On March 29, 2023, Square, Montour and Oakes negotiated the family’s perilous crossing. According to court documents, on March 29, 2023, at approximately 9:29 p.m., Oakes’ vehicle with a light blue boat in tow is recorded traveling eastbound away from the Oakes’ residence towards a public boat launch. The vehicle depicted was registered to Oakes. According to court documents, on March 29, 2023, between 10:09 p.m. and 10:50 p.m., AMPS received multiple calls from citizens on Cornwall Island reporting hearing cries for help on the St. Lawrence River. The callers also reported the terrible weather conditions. During this time, Square instructed Montour to search the banks of the St. Lawrence River for the missing family. On March 30, 2023, AMPS received a report that Casey Oakes, Timothy Oakes’ brother, was missing since the evening of March 29, 2023. Between March 30 and 31, 2023, AMPS conducted a riverine search for Casey Oakes. During the search, AMPS recovered the bodies of eight deceased foreign nationals, including two small children, from the frigid St. Lawrence River near Cattle Island and Chatelain Island. AMPS also recovered a light blue boat. On July 3, 2023, the decomposed body of Casey Oakes was recovered near Ross Island, approximately eight miles from the eight deceased migrants. HSI Massena engaged in an extensive years-long investigation of the case, with assistance from the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), HSI’s Human Smuggling Unit in Washington, D.C., CBP’s National Targeting Center International Interdiction Task Force, New York State Police, Canada Border Services Agency, Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service, St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Police Department, Ontario Provincial Police, Sûreté du Québec, St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Cornwall Police Service. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant support with foreign legal assistance requests and securing the arrest and extradition of Delormier.