Stephanie Square, a dual Canadian-American citizen from the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian Territory, has pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court to organizing an alien-smuggling operation that prosecutors say led to the drowning deaths of a Romanian family of four—including two children under age 3—during a nighttime crossing of the St. Lawrence River in March 2023.
U.S. prosecutors say Square, 53, led an alien-smuggling organization that routinely moved migrants across the U.S.-Canada border through the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian Reservation.
According to court documents summarized by the Justice Department, a Canadian smuggler contacted Square during the week of March 27, 2023, seeking to move a Romanian family of four across the St. Lawrence River into the United States. Authorities say Square recruited other participants to help with the crossing, and that at least one person declined to assist because of high winds on the river.
Prosecutors say Square nonetheless directed the operation to proceed despite what they described as dangerous conditions, including high winds, freezing temperatures and limited visibility. Court documents state the family arrived at a residence on Cornwall Island on March 29, 2023, and that late that night a boat piloted by Casey Oakes attempted to take them across the river. The boat capsized in severe weather, and the Romanian family and Oakes died, according to the Justice Department.
The Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service recovered the bodies of the four family members between March 30 and March 31, 2023, the Justice Department said. The body of Oakes, identified in later reporting as a 30-year-old Akwesasne man, was recovered months later.
Square pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit alien smuggling, four counts of alien smuggling for financial gain, and four counts of alien smuggling resulting in death. Prosecutors said she faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum of life; a judge will determine the final sentence. The Justice Department said her sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 25.
Authorities also said four co-conspirators—Dakota Montour, Kawisiiostha Celecia Sharrow, Janet Terrance and Timothy Oakes—have entered guilty pleas in the case. The Justice Department said Square and another defendant, Rahsontanohstha Delormier (also known as Storm), were extradited from Canada to the United States in 2025, and that Delormier pleaded guilty in June.
