Recreational divers find body on bottom of lake

Sûreté du Québec divers have pulled a decomposed body from the bottom of a deep lake in Valdes-Monts, but police have yet to determine if foul play was involved.

The body has been sent for forensic tests, an SQ spokesman said. It could be weeks before a determination is made about the cause of death.

“It was a body, but it was more bones that were found,” said Sgt. Marc Tessier. “It’s too early to say anything about foul play. We have to wait for the results.”

Other things were found in the water near the body — Tessier would not describe the items — and they’re also being analyzed in the lab, he said.

Tessier could not say how long the body had been in the water, and could not confirm whether the bones are those of a male or female.

The body was discovered Nov. 8 by recreational scuba divers who were exploring Lac McFee, about an hour north of Ottawa. The steep-sided lake reaches a maximum depth of 55 metres.

The recreational divers, using flashlights at depth, came across the human remains in about 35 metres of water, not far from the boat launch. They notified police of their find.

Police divers recovered the body the following day, and told curious locals they thought the body was that of a female.

Lac McFee drains into nearby Lac Dodds, which was the scene of a notorious double-murder in November 2003.

Well-known Ottawa teachers Bob and Bonnie Dagenais were at their cottage on Lac Dodds, enjoying an intimate dinner, when a man with guns tattooed on his face and a young accomplice confronted them in their secluded vacation property.

The two teachers, married for 30 years and both recently retired, were shot at point-blank range with stolen 12-gauge shotguns during what defence lawyers portrayed as a botched robbery.

René Michaud, a 29-year-old woodcutter with a lengthy criminal record, was found guilty in November 2003 of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

A second defendant, who was 16 at the time, pleaded guilty to two murder counts and testified against Michaud. He said Michaud talked about killing someone and occupying their cottage.

Before the shootings, Michaud and the youth broke into a series of local cottages.

It was a body, but it was more bones that were found. It’s too early to say anything about foul play.