Search for Missing Children in Nova Scotia Scaled Back
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has scaled back its search for two missing children in Pictou County, Nova Scotia. Lily Sullivan, 6, and Jack Sullivan, 4, have been missing since May 2, when police received a 911 call reporting that they had wandered away from their home on Gairloch Road in Lansdowne Station, roughly 25 kilometres southwest of New Glasgow. According to a report by CBC News, the RCMP’s command centre in the rural Pictou County community has been packed up, and ground search crews have left the area.
The RCMP announced on Wednesday that after six days of scouring the heavily wooded areas surrounding the home, there was no sign of the children, and it’s not likely they are alive. Staff Sgt. Curtis MacKinnon told a news conference that the active search was being "scaled back," but the missing persons investigation would continue. "So rather than having the large presence here, the massive number of searchers on scene every day, searches will be based on information that comes in," MacKinnon said, as reported by CBC News. "We’re not packing up and we’re not giving up. Our investigation is broad and it won’t end until we know where Lily and Jack are and can bring them home."
The RCMP’s major crime unit has been involved in the investigation since May 3, and MacKinnon said all missing persons files "are treated as suspicious until our investigation leads us to determine otherwise." The CBC News reported that Daniel Martell, the stepfather of the children, has said he believes Lily and Jack slipped out their sliding back door while he and the children’s mother were in their bedroom with their one-year-old daughter. Martell has repeatedly said he believes the children were abducted, but RCMP have said there is no evidence of that.
Martell has been co-operating with police, handing over his phone and allowing investigators to search the home and his belongings. He has also asked police to give him a polygraph test, which will happen in the next few days. "I just want to clear it up for everyone, not just the people online making crazy accusations and everything else," Martell said, as quoted in the CBC News article. "I asked for that early on, and there’s not many places that do that in Canada, so they’re flying somebody in."
The children’s mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray, has left the area with their one-year-old to be with her family in another part of the province. The children’s grandmother, Cyndy Murray, expressed her hopes for the safe return of her grandchildren, saying "We’re just hoping and praying for the best — that’s it — for our babies to come home." A makeshift memorial has been set up at the nearby Stellarton RCMP detachment, with a large white teddy bear and bouquet of flowers resting on a post outside the building.
According to CBC News, the RCMP has not ruled out that the case is suspicious, and the investigation is ongoing. The police force has declined to comment on the specifics of the investigation, citing the need to protect the integrity of the probe. As the search for Lily and Jack Sullivan continues, the community remains hopeful for their safe return. The CBC News article reported that a helicopter could be seen flying over the area during the day, and while RCMP have said some areas that were already searched would be revisited as part of the scaled-back efforts, they would not say how many searchers or investigators remain involved in the case.
In the days following the disappearance, Martell has remained at the home, receiving daily updates from search and rescue officials and speaking to the reporters who descended upon the county of roughly 43,000 people. The community has come together to support the family, with many offering words of encouragement and assistance in the search efforts. As the investigation continues, the RCMP is urging anyone with information to come forward. The CBC News will continue to provide updates on this developing story as more information becomes available.
