Bizarre voicemails frighten community

No criminal charges will be laid after local schools were closed Tuesday in response to troubling voicemail messages left at Rotiwennakéhte Elementary School and the Mohawk Council of Kanesatake (MCK).

“The individual was identified and interviewed. He is an Ontario resident,” said Surete du Quebec spokesperson Marc Tessier. “After analysis, no criminal element was found.”

Officers were alerted to the situation around 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, when the SQ was notified of a precautionary closure at both Rotiwennakéhte and Ratihén:te High School.

“There were no specific threats in the message,” said Tessier. “Instead, it contained disjointed and incoherent suggestions.”

Initially, the closure was attributed to unforeseen circumstances, with assurance that an update would be sent to parents. A statement from the Kanesatake Education Center (KEC) education director Watsenniiostha Nelson explained later that morning that the elementary school had received a disturbing voicemail, which did not include threats, leading to the precautionary measure.

“We extend our sincere gratitude to all parents, guardians, and community members for your patience, understanding, and cooperation today,” Nelson wrote in a second statement later the same day, in which she said the caller had been identified by police.

Kahontóktha Beauvais, who has children enrolled at Rotiwennakéhte, was on site at the school that morning as she is doing an internship there through McGill University.

“We were all a little bit uneasy, and I was a little bit panicky because I have two kids that go to the school. As a parent, I was freaking out inside, but as a teacher, I was keeping my composure as much as I could for the students,” Beauvais said.

“It was very nerve-wracking, and it just makes you realize that our schools have to be ready for anything,” she added. “I was very proud of how our school handled the situation and the safety of the students.”

Kanesatake Perimeter Security (KPS) was also on scene.

“It was disturbing,” said Kane Montour, coordinator of KPS. “There wasn’t a direct threat. They didn’t say they were going to blow the school up or anything like that, but it was threatening to say the least, indirectly.”

KPS stood by the entrances checking everyone who came in or out of the building but didn’t see anyone who didn’t belong. After the building was cleared, Montour escorted one bus while another community member followed another to ensure there were no incidents.

“I went back to the school, and we waited until the last person left the building. Once all the kids were gone and all the teachers were gone, my team pulled out,” he said.

While Montour feels disseminating specific information as soon as possible can help prevent rumours from circulating as people imagine the worst, he was pleased to see the school react promptly.

“I’m glad everyone took it seriously,” he said. “I know some people wouldn’t have reacted the way they did, and who knows.”

School resumed Wednesday for both schools with an increased police presence on patrol in the area as an added precaution, according to the KEC.

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Marcus Bankuti, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter