A Canadian woman was extradited to New York on Friday to face charges in a human smuggling operation that killed a Romanian family of four in the St. Lawrence River.
Stephanie Square, 52, appeared in court in Plattsburgh after being extradited from Canada, according to a Justice Department announcement on October 31, 2025. The dual Canadian-American citizen allegedly led a smuggling ring that moved people across the U.S.–Canada border through the Akwesasne Mohawk Indian Reservation (AMIR), a territory that spans both countries.
The case highlights the deadly risks of border smuggling operations that exploit Indigenous territories spanning international boundaries. Four members of Square’s alleged network have already been arrested, with three pleading guilty.
Court documents detail how Square allegedly orchestrated the fatal crossing on March 29, 2023. A Romanian family — two adults and two children — paid to be smuggled across the St. Lawrence River despite dangerous weather conditions.
Square recruited Dakota Montour to drive the family to Timothy Oakes’ residence on Cornwall Island. The location served as a staging area for cross-border smuggling operations.
The family arrived at 3:35 a.m. and waited until evening. At 9:29 p.m., surveillance captured Oakes’ vehicle towing a light blue boat toward a public launch.
Within an hour, multiple citizens called police, reporting cries for help from the river. Callers noted the terrible weather conditions that night.
Square instructed Montour to search the riverbanks for the missing family. At 3:36 a.m. on March 30, she told him to delete all their messages.
Police recovered the bodies of all four family members over the next two days. They also found Oakes’ boat.
The boat captain, Case Oakes, wasn’t found until eight months later.
Federal prosecutors charged Square with conspiracy to engage in alien smuggling and four counts each of smuggling for profit and smuggling resulting in death. Timothy Oakes remains detained awaiting trial.
Three co-conspirators have pleaded guilty: Dakota Montour, 31, and Kawisiiostha Celecia Sharrow, 43, both of Akwesasne, New York, and Janet Terrance, 45, of Hogansburg, New York.
The investigation involved multiple agencies across two countries, including Homeland Security Investigations, Border Patrol, and multiple Canadian law enforcement bodies. It’s part of Joint Task Force Alpha, which targets transnational smuggling networks.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Stitt and Trial Attorney Jenna Reed are prosecuting the case. The case is part of the Justice Department’s Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative targeting cartels and transnational criminal organizations operating across the Americas.