Body of U.S. citizen found in river near Ontario town

(CTV News Winnipeg)

A body found in a river near the Ontario town of Emo has been identified as a missing U.S. citizen who police believe tried crossing the border.

The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) said the body was pulled from the Rainy River near Emo on April 16, and has since been identified as 59-year-old Michael Tjosaas. Police said the cause of death is consistent with drowning, and no foul play is suspected.

Tjosaas had been missing since Dec. 28, 2024. The OPP said back in January, officers were asked to help police in International Falls, Minn., search for Tjosaas, who had gone missing.

“US law enforcement believed the missing person had attempted to cross into Canada at a location other than a Port of Entry,” the OPP said in a news release Monday.

The river in which Tjosaas was found runs along a roughly 135-kilometre stretch of the Canada-U.S. border. It stretches from the Lake of the Woods to Rainy Lake just east of Fort Frances.

The OPP said the investigation is now closed.