The body found Wednesday not far from Roxham road, in Montérégie, is that of a man of Haitian origin who had tried to cross the border to go to the United States.
The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) eventually identified the man as Fritznel Richard, 44, from Montreal.
“Mr. Fritznel would have tried, according to the investigation, to join a member of his family living in the United States and would have died during this unfortunate attempt”, indicates the SQ, by way of press release.
The police force specifies that the body bore no visible marks of violence and that hypothermia seems to be the probable cause of death. “A coroner’s inquest should be carried out in order to find the specific cause or causes as well as the circumstances of the death,” it added.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
The SQ confirms by the fact that it had launched a wanted notice during the holiday season, between December 27 and 29, in an attempt to find Fitznel Richard, after his disappearance had been reported by relatives.
However, the search had been interrupted “while the information held indicated that Mr. Richard would have entered the United States”, affirms the police.
Recall that the body of Fitznel Richard was spotted Wednesday on the Canadian side of the border by an American helicopter on patrol. It remains unclear whether the man had any status in Canada.