Search dogs find evidence of human remains at site of Montreal's Old Royal Victoria Hospital

Cadaver dogs conducting a search on the grounds of the Old Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal have discovered evidence of human remains, according to a new report.

A group of Indigenous elders alleges that the site contains unmarked graves of Indigenous children who died as a result of mind-control experiments that took place in the 1950s and 1960s at a psychiatric institute affiliated with the former hospital.

The Mohawk Mothers obtained an injunction last October to pause excavation work done by McGill University at the site to expand its campus with a new research, teaching and learning hub. Both sides agreed in April to conduct a search for potentially unmarked graves.

On Thursday, a report presented to the Quebec Superior Court said a team of three trained search dogs have pinpointed an area on the site possibly containing human remains near the Hersey Pavilion, a nurses' residence.

"Given that three separate dog teams indicated the same location independently with a TFR [Trained Final Response], we are confident that the odour of human remains is in this area," the report by the Ottawa Valley Search and Rescue Dog Association stated.

A German Shepherd, a Dutch Shepherd, and a Malinois searched the site on June 9, alongside their dog handlers, archeologists and two Kanien’keha:ka Kahnistensera cultural monitors.

Julian Falconer, a lawyer for the Independent Special Interlocutor for Missing Children and Unmarked Graves and Burial Sites associated with Indian Residential Schools, an intervenor in the legal proceedings, was appointed to oversee the search.

A red dot marks the site where cadaver dogs identified odours of potential human remains at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal. (Source: Ottawa Valley Search and Rescue Dog Association)

"It's very important to understand it doesn't necessarily mean that there are human bodies located in the area all three teams identified, but certainly their function is to identify a specific odour and a target area, and these three sets of dogs did," he said in an interview Thursday.

The Mohawk Mothers claim that they have evidence of graves from a survivor of the MK-Ultra mind-control experiments conducted at the Allan Memorial Institute on the Royal Victoria grounds.

Canada and the CIA allegedly funded harmful psychological experiments on vulnerable patients that included experimental drugs and rounds of electroshock therapy.

The cadaver dogs' discovery is a major development in the construction project saga, which the Mohawk Mothers have been opposing since 2015.

"Of course, this has done nothing but multiply the anxiety and concerns of the Mohawk Mothers. And what you're seeing now playing out in real time and played out in court today is the level of upset this causes," Falconer said.

Kwetiio, a Mohawk Mother, told CTV News that in an ideal scenario, there would be no unmarked graves on the grounds of the former hospital, but the recent discovery does provide some "relief" to Indigenous people that what they've been saying all along is likely true.

"They feel validated, that it's not just talk that they were saying, that is actually concluded to something. That relief, that comfort of knowing that somebody listened and did something about it and that we're gonna address it. It's going to be dealt with," Kwetiio said.

She said Indigenous elders advocating for the work to be halted will be meeting in the coming days to decide the next steps.

The Mohawk Mothers are also trying to resolve concerns they raised regarding inadequate security at the site and cultural protocols not being respected.  

GROUND-PENETRATING RADAR TO TAKE PLACE THIS SUMMER: MCGILL

McGill University says it's prepared to move forward with the second step of investigations: ground penetrating radar. That's expected to start later in the summer, the university wrote in a statement to CTV. 

The site itself is owned by the Societe quebecoise des infrastructures, which is mandated to redevelop the land. McGill is expecting to use about 15 per cent of the land for teaching and research. 

The university also renewed its vow to respect an agreement that "Indigenous cultural monitors," who are appointed by the Kanien’keha:ka Kahnistensera, will be on site during the investigation. 

"McGill fully respects the agreement," wrote McGill. 

With files from The Canadian Press