Agencies are searching for 3 victims of falls in the Niagara River Gorge

October 30. New York State Police and State Park Police are conducting a gruesome search for the bodies of a Falls woman and her two young children after all three died in what investigators are calling an “intentional” incident. .”

State police, along with park police officers, were dispatched to Goat Island around 9 p.m. Monday to investigate reports of a woman and two children swimming into the rapids of the Niagara River at the edge of the falls.

“It’s a small area near the crest of the falls where we believe they entered,” the police’s public information officer said at a news conference Wednesday night. “The circumstances of how it happened is the part we can solve, or we’ll never know. I’m not going to go into what the witnesses saw because the case is still ongoing, but what they told us is alarming. “

O’Callaghan and other law enforcement sources also said the incident was captured on video by surveillance cameras at the state park and near the edge of the falls.

Authorities have identified the victims as Chayanti Minz, 33, of Falls, and her son, Roman Rossman, 9, and her daughter, Mecca Minz, 5 months.

On Wednesday afternoon, Park Police drones and Marine units searched the lower Niagara River Gorge in an attempt to find the bodies of the victims. They were helped by the underwater evacuation unit of the state police and a helicopter.

Fall police were also reportedly assisting in the investigation.

“We started with the little information we had and overnight and (Tuesday) we came to the conclusion that a 33-year-old mother, a 9-year-old son and a five-month-old baby had gone over the falls,” O’Callaghan said. “We believe it was deliberate, but the circumstances of what actually happened are being investigated. They definitely went there that night and none of them came back. We know from the information that it was a deliberate act, but the reason is tougher respond”.

O’Callaghan said investigators believe Rossman entered the water first. Afterward, he said, “it was a ripple effect.”

The investigator said that the five-month-old child entered the water next, followed by her mother. Asked if Means might have chased the children, O’Callaghan said bluntly: “No, we believe it was intentional.”

Investigators said Means and the children climbed over a 3- to 4-foot safety railing to enter the water.

“It’s not so much about the height as it is about the deadly terrain,” O’Callaghan said.

According to him, detectives of the Bureau of Criminal Investigations of the State Police are conducting a thorough investigation of the incident.

“We needed to get families involved, schools involved. We needed to get a lot of information out there,” O’Callaghan said. “Search warrants on some of the houses to see if we can get any information, any prior plan.”

A state police spokesman said the parents of both of Means’ children have been “very cooperative.”

“We look forward to hearing from you,” O’Callaghan said. “That allowed us to speed it up a little bit in our investigation.”

Investigators said they are still looking into whether mental health issues may have played a role in the incident. O’Callaghan said no criminal charges are expected as a result of the state police investigation.

Maj. James Hee, commander of the Parks Police in Western New York, said his officers will be focused on recovery efforts.

“Our Swift Water Rescue team is in the gorge on the water in places where they can be,” Gee said. “The pool is directly below the falls, we can put a boat there and further down the river around Fort Niagara. Upriver to Power Vista we look for water and shorelines. Our hearts are with the family.

“A lot of the people who work on this have kids at home, so it’s impressive.”