Canadian-American Man Pleads Guilty in Smuggling Plot That Killed Romanian Family of Four

Rahsontanohstha Delormier, 31, admitted his role in a human smuggling conspiracy that led to the drowning deaths of a Romanian family, including two young children, in the St. Lawrence River.

Boat Driver Admits Role in Fatal St. Lawrence River Smuggling Operation

A dual Canadian-American citizen has pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges stemming from a human smuggling operation that left a Romanian family of four dead in the St. Lawrence River, DOJ Justice News reports.

Rahsontanohstha Delormier, 31, also known as "Storm," from the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian Territory in Canada, was extradited from Canada before entering his plea. He served as a boat driver for a human smuggling organization (HSO) that moved migrants from Canada into northern New York, crossing the St. Lawrence River by boat.

"This case is a tragic example of what happens when alien smugglers act for their own greed with callous disregard for human life and for the orderly administration of our nation's immigration laws," said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department's Criminal Division.

A Family Left at the Water's Edge

Beginning around 2023, Delormier worked with an HSO that transported migrants of various nationalities from mainland Cornwall, Ontario, to Cornwall Island, Canada, and then through the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian reserve into the Northern District of New York. The organization held migrants at local motels in Cornwall before staging them along the banks of the St. Lawrence River for nighttime crossings by boat.

On the night of March 28, 2023, and into the early hours of March 29, a co-conspirator drove a family of four Romanian migrants from mainland Cornwall to Cornwall Island in a truck provided by Delormier. At approximately 3:06 a.m., the family was dropped at Delormier's residence in preparation for the river crossing.

Delormier launched a boat from a landing in St. Regis, Quebec, intending to retrieve the family. High winds, freezing temperatures, and near-zero visibility caused his boat to break down, stranding him on St. Regis Island. With Delormier unable to complete the crossing, a co-conspirator transported the Romanian family to a public boat launch at the tip of Cornwall Island, where a different boat pilot attempted to take them across the river. The boat capsized in the severe weather. The Romanian family — two adults and two children under the age of three — and the boat driver all died.

Guilty Plea and Sentencing

Delormier pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and four counts of alien smuggling for financial gain. Sentencing is scheduled for October 27, with a minimum of five years and a maximum of 15 years in federal prison. A federal district court judge will determine the final sentence after considering U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

"Rahsontanohstha Delormier's actions led to the deaths of two young children and their parents — a loss that will be felt forever by their family and the North Country community," said Acting Special Agent in Charge Anthony Patrone of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Buffalo Field Office.

Co-Conspirators and Extradition

Several others connected to the smuggling network have also entered guilty pleas. Dakota Montour, 32, and Kawisiiostha Celecia Sharrow, 45, both of the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian reserve in New York, pleaded guilty on January 23, 2025, and October 8, 2024, respectively. Janet Terrance, 46, of Hogansburg, New York, entered a guilty plea on March 6, 2025, and Timothy Oakes, 35, from the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian reserve, pleaded guilty on May 11, 2026.

Delormier and co-conspirator Stephanie Square, 53, of the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian Territory in Canada, were both extradited from Canada in 2025. Square has not yet gone to trial.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney John A. Sarone III for the Northern District of New York credited cooperation across multiple jurisdictions. "This case highlights the success we can have when working together across government, federal law enforcement, tribal leaders on both sides of the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian reserve and our partners across the border in Canada," Sarone said.

Multi-Agency Investigation

The case was the product of a years-long investigation led by HSI Massena, with support from U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the New York State Police, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service, the St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Police Department, Canada Border Services Agency, Ontario Provincial Police, Sûreté du Québec, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Cornwall Police Service, and other agencies. The Justice Department's Office of International Affairs played a key role in securing the extraditions of both Delormier and Square.

The prosecution was supported by Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), the Justice Department's lead effort against high-impact human smuggling and trafficking carried out by cartels and transnational criminal organizations.

Source: DOJ Justice News