Elder from Whitefish River First Nation hoping for return of stolen regalia

A man from Birch Island, in Whitefish River First Nation, said he's still trying to cope with the theft of his regalia while he was in Toronto on Sunday, Jan. 12.

Tim McGregor, of the northeastern Ontario First Nation south of Espanola, said the sacred and intensely personal items were in a suitcase that was taken from his truck.

He was visiting Toronto working with Indigenous students to help connect them with the Anishnaabe language and culture, using his own regalia to illustrate their heritage.

McGregor said his truck was parked at a busy intersection and when he went to it Sunday morning, he noticed slits in the tonneau cover where thieves reached in to undo the latches to gain access.

He was shocked to discover his luggage containing the regalia, weighing around 23 kilograms was gone.

"I shook for a while," he said. "My nose, after about 10 minutes or so, started bleeding. It took all afternoon before it quit. I don't know if it was stress or anything like that, but that was my physical reaction to it."

The significance of the theft has had a huge impact on him.

"Spiritually, that's been with me for many, many years and is a big part of who I am," he said.  He added the regalia was meaningful to his students who were learning from it.

The regalia was made by his cousin and he thought it would be the last that he would need in this life.

He said he had to pull over a couple of times, overwhelmed with the loss.

McGregor doesn't think the theft was targeted or the thieves necessarily knew what they were taking.

A wooden box containing his bustle, dance stick and eagle fan was not taken, for which McGregor is thankful.

"It wasn't touched," he said. "But part of me also says that's a lot of medicine and that it probably sent out that message, leave us alone, kind of thing." 

He has hopes that if the thieves didn't throw the regalia in a dumpster, it is distinctive enough to make its way back to him, in a matter of time.