Indigenous woman, 61, found dead near Montreal construction site was a 'lovely soul'
CBC
Elisapie Pootoogook often came to Montreal for medical treatment from Salluit, one Quebec's northernmost communities, nearly 2,000 kilometres from the city.
"She was a lovely soul. She would have these really cute sayings," said David Chapman, executive director of Resilience Montreal, who knew her for about eight years.
"If she was excited about something, she would say, 'oh my stars. Oh my stars.'"
Pootoogook was found dead Saturday morning near a construction site on René-Lévesque Boulevard, not far from the Atwater Avenue intersection. She was 61.
Montreal police spokesperson Const. Caroline Chèvrefils said there was a 911 call Saturday at 8:20 a.m. about a woman lying on the ground.
Urgences-santé arrived on the scene and paramedics confirmed the woman was dead, she said. They then requested police assistance.
Investigators determined that the woman was not the victim of a crime and the case was transferred to the coroner's office for further investigation, Chèvrefils said.
Chèvrefils would not speculate on the cause of death, saying the case is now in the hands of the coroner.
Chapman said it could have been medical, like cardiac arrest, or Pootoogook could have died of hypothermia.
What he does know is she was likely seeking warmth, as she would often stay in the Atwater Metro station for as long as she could — dodging security that has been tightened since the pandemic, he said.
She would move with others between the station and Cabot Square, a common gathering place for unhoused Indigenous people.
"It appears on this occasion, she went a little further than the park and made her way to the condo development," he said.
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