Six bodies, including one of a child, found in marshy area of river near US-Canada border

Six bodies, including one of a child, were found in a marshy area close to Canada’s border with New York state, the local police service said on Thursday night.

Officers are investigating the discovery in the St Lawrence River and await the results of post-mortem and toxicology tests to determine the cause of death.

They said they were still trying to identify the dead and their status in Canada. It wasn’t immediately known if they were migrants trying to cross the border, The Associated Press reported.

“The first body was located around 5pm in a marsh area in Tsi Snaihne, Akwesasne, Quebec,” police said in a statement on social media. “There is no threat to the public at this time.”

At least one of the deceased was a child with a Canadian passport, Police Chief Shawn Dulude said. The ages or the nationalities of the other victims were not immediately known.

Earlier in the afternoon, a helicopter spotted an overturned boat in the water, BNO News said.