New York State Police say the children fell at Niagara Falls before their mother did

New York State Police say they are continuing to search for bodies including: a mother and her two children who swam across Niagara Falls on Monday evening.

The victims are believed to be 33-year-old Chaianti Means, her 9-year-old son Roman Rossman and 5-month-old daughter Mecca Means. Niagara Newspaper reports that investigators are beginning to shed some light on what they know, calling the incident “intentional in nature.”

“We believe this is intentional, 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 information that this was an intentional act, but the cause is more difficult to explain,” said Trooper James O’Callaghan, State Police Public Information Officer. “The circumstances under which this happened is a part we may be able to solve, but we may never know. “I won’t go into what the witnesses saw because it’s still an ongoing case, but what they told us is disturbing.”

O’Callaghan said the incident was captured on video by surveillance cameras at the state park and near the edge of the falls. A 9-year-old boy was the first to enter the water, around 9 p.m. Monday, through a 3- to 4-foot-long safety barrier, followed by a girl. then their mother stepped in.

The boy was the first to cross the waterfall, he said.

Asked if Means chased her children, O’Callaghan replied: “No, we think it was intentional.”

According to the Gazette, investigators are working to determine whether mental health issues may have played a role. The fathers of both children were “very cooperative,” O’Callaghan added.

Means, who lived with her family at Niagara Falls, apparently worked as a domestic violence counselor in Western New York.

Investigation i look for bodies both continue. Searchers, including marine units and Park Police drones, are focusing on the gorge and shoreline of the Niagara River.

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