A Voice from the Eastern Door
A Voice from the Eastern Door
Helicopters Search Large Ground and Water Area
At the requests of the Akwesasne Mohawk Police, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and the Surete Du Quebec (SQ) assisted in the search of Kenneth Leaf. The OPP helicopter sits at the St. Regis Recreation field while the SQ prepares to land nearby. Photo: MJKS.
(L to R) Sargeant Dan Mulligan, Detective Constable James Sunday, and Matt Eamer, shortly after Tuesdays search for Kenneth Leaf. Photo: MJKS.
Kenneth Leaf, missing since January 22, is shown here at the Akwesasne Powwow with his son.
On Friday, March 2, 2018, a group of community members gathered peacefully at the Akwesasne Mohawk Police station in Kana:takon (St. Regis) to express their concerns regarding the disappearance of Kenneth Leaf and the progress of the police investigation. In follow up meetings over the weekend, AMPS investigators have identified that there was a miscommunication that has been rectified. AMPS investigators responded directly to the immediate family's questions and concerns and reassured them that the investigation has continued intensely.
"Locating Mr. Leaf continues to be of highest priority to AMPS," said Chief of Police Shawn Dulude.
Chief of Police Dulude contacted Mr. Leaf's family on Sunday, March 4th to answer any additional concerns they may have had. A meeting was scheduled for Monday, March 5th to provide immediate family members with an update on the investigation. The Akwesasne Mohawk Police will continue to provide regular updates to the family.
St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Police, Chief of Police Matt Rourke also met with a family member, Candy Leaf on Tuesday to share the efforts of the police on this missing person case. According to Rourke, AMPS contacted the station soon after Leaf was declared missing and both forces have been vigilant in gathering and sharing information.
Rourke stated, "When an adult goes missing, the procedures are different than with a child. You have Amber Alerts, which are issued almost immediately. As far as "If you see something – say something", we have leads that come into our office and with every lead, we check that out. On one case, we worked on over 800 leads. Community members can contact us by Facebook (messenger), a call to our office, or with any SRMTP officer."
Last week AMPS made arrangements with the Ontario Provincial Police to provide additional air search assistance. The air search took place on Tuesday, March 6, 2018 with the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and the Surete Du Quebec (SQ) assisting. Detective Sargent Kariwate Mitchell assisted in the SQ helicopter and Detective Constable James Sunday assisted in the OPP helicopter.
Helicopters from both services were visible in the airspace of the Akwesasne territory.
Residents of Kana:takon saw the helicopters land and take off in the St. Regis Recreation Center field around 9:30am. The search ended at approximately 3:30pm. The Chief of Police said previous searches involving this case had been focused on frozen surfaces of the St. Lawrence River and Snye Channel but Tuesday's search included other areas over fields and residential areas covering a large area of Akwesasne including: southern portions of Cornwall, Hamilton Island and other eastern islands, Tsi Snaihne and the surrounding area.
The case remains active. If you have any information that can help locate Kenneth Leaf and bring peace to his family, please report it to the Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service at 613-575-2000 or Crime Stoppers at 613-575-2255. Tips may be submitted anonymously.
DESCRIPTION OF MISSING PERSON:
Name: Kenneth Francis Leaf
Age: 50
Hair: Balding/shaved head, dark brown facial hair (goatee)
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'9"
Weight: Approximately 230 lbs., heavy build.
Clothing: Last seen wearing a camouflage jacket and green Star Wars hat.
Reader Comments(0)