Latest news with #searchoperation
CTV News
19 hours ago
- CTV News
Witness who encountered mom of missing Montreal toddler speaks out
Claire Bell, 3, seen here moments after being found following a four-day search. (Source: Courtesy/Noovo Info) The mother of a three-year-old Montreal girl who was found alive after going missing for four days pulled up to a farm in eastern Ontario the day she reported her daughter missing and was 'confused' and 'rambling,' according to witnesses. Noovo Info spoke with one of them, who called 911 after later learning that the toddler was the subject of a vast search operation spanning two provinces. The witness and his mother encountered the girl's mother, 34-year-old Rachel-Ella Todd, Sunday when she drove up to their farm in St. Albert, Ont. and acted in a strange manner, he said. The witness spoke to Noovo Info on the condition of anonymity because of recent criticism of his family in recent days on social media. Their farm is about two kilometres from the location where the missing child was found Wednesday afternoon alone on the side of Highway 417 after being spotted by an Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) drone. The witness said he didn't pay much attention to the mother's behaviour, adding that he sometimes encounters 'odd people.' It was only several days later — Wednesday morning — that the witness contacted police after seeing a post circulating on Facebook about the missing child and her mother. 'We don't spend our days in front of the television,' he said in an interview. missing montreal girl People gather to watch police from the Ontario Provincial Police and Surete du Quebec brief the media on the discovery of a three-year-old girl after she went missing on Sunday, in St. Albert, Ont., Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press) (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press) Police announced Wednesday morning that they had spoken to a farmer, describing her as an important witness in the case. That interview with police was crucial in officers finding the child on the side the highway hours later. 'There should have been an Amber Alert,' witness says The witness said Thursday that authorities should have issued an Amber Alert to help locate the child sooner. 'There should have been an Amber Alert for Quebec and Ontario. We would have acted much faster! We don't care about the criteria, they should have issued it,' he said. SQ search missing girl Quebec provincial police officers seen during a search for a missing three-year-old girl, who was found in Ontario on June 19, 2025. (CTV News) There have been several comments on social media about his and his mother's involvement in the case, he said, with some calling him a hero, while others argue he didn't act quickly enough. He emphasizes, however, that the important thing for him and his mother is that the child was found safe and sound. Quebec provincial police have previously said the case didn't warrant an Amber Alert since it does not meet the necessary criteria of suspected abduction. An Amber Alert is only issued when all three of the following criteria are met: The police have reason to believe that the missing child (someone under 18 years of age) has been abducted; The police have reason to believe that the physical safety or the life of the child is in serious danger; The police have information that may help locate the child, the suspect and/or the suspect's vehicle. Capt. Benoit Richard of the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) said in an interview Thursday that after reviewing every aspect of the child's disappearance, an Amber Alert was not the right call. 'The criteria was not met,' he said, adding that there was a lot of information already being shared in the news media, which ultimately led police to the girl in Ontario. Police believe child was alone the entire time According the investigation, investigators believe the young child was dropped off on the side of the road and left there, leaving police — and the public — wondering how she managed to survive with no food or water. 'For somebody that's been missing like that, a young child, a three-year-old, it's my first time, and I've been on the force for 32 years,' Richard said. Benoit Richard Captain Benoit Richard of the Surete du Quebec speaks to media after a three-year-old girl was found alive, in St. Albert, Ont., Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press) When the officer rescued her on Highway 417, he handed her pieces of mango and some Gatorade he had packed for himself to snack on during the search as it entered its fourth day Wednesday. 'She's still in the hospital. She's with her family. She's doing well, considering that she's been three days outside. She's dehydrated, but she's doing fine,' Richard said about the girl. The investigation is ongoing and police could recommend the Crown lay additional charges against the mother, but for now, police are still just 'ecstatic' and relieved that the toddler was found safe and sound after everything she went through. Highway 417 Highway 417 in Ontario, where a three-year-old girl who went missing last Sunday was found on Wednesday afternoon. (Source: Noovo Info) After she was found, search crews were clapping and giving each other high-fives, as passersby honked their horns on the side of the road to salute the police's work. The case 'had everybody in Quebec rooting for us, and everybody's happy, and everybody thinks that we made something good happen,' Richard added. Comments made by the mother the day she reported her daughter missing had raised heightened concerns about the girl's wellbeing. A video published on the mother's TikTok account on Sunday shows her holding her daughter in her arms, visibly angry. 'You try that again and this is going to get ugly,' Todd says in the video as her daughter looks into the camera. The caption on the video says, 'Have you come up against a mother with nothing to lose????' It's not clear who her remarks were directed at. 'It's almost a miracle' girl was found A day after the toddler was rescued, many were still praising the work of police officers on both sides of the border, including Nancy Duncan, director of operations at the Missing Children's Network. 'The fact that we got this outcome after four days is — I want to almost say it's almost a miracle. We were ecstatic, and it's what we all hoped for,' she said in an interview Thursday. Nancy Duncan Nancy Duncan, director of operations at the Missing Children's Network. (CTV News) More than 150 police officers from the SQ and the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) were part of the search involving helicopters, drones and ground search crews across a vast area spanning two provinces. Duncan, who has been at the network for 20 years, said the police's efforts were nothing short of 'extraordinary.' 'It's hard. It's not something that everybody can do, and they have a certain sense of empathy in keeping the family as the priority, and the child, so it's quite nice to see,' she said in an interview. The girl's father, Matthew Bell, reacted on Instagram Wednesday night, thanking those who helped find his daughter. 'Thank you for everyone's help. [sic] Please allow me and my family to take this time with our girl,' he posted. While the young girl recovers from the ordeal, her mother remains behind bars after being charged with child abandonment. She is scheduled to return to court Friday to set a date for a bail hearing, likely next week. With files from CTV News' Rob Lurie and Noovo Info
CBC
2 days ago
- CBC
Search for missing Quebec toddler enters 3rd day
About 150 police officers and trained volunteers are scouring a large search area west of the Montreal island, as the operation to locate a missing three-year-old girl enters its third day. As of Wednesday morning, there still appeared to be no sign of three-year-old Claire Bell. Her mother, Rachel-Ella Todd, is scheduled to make her second appearance at the Salaberry-de-Valleyfield courthouse. Todd, who turned 34 on the eve of Claire's disappearance, was arrested and charged with child abandonment late on Monday. The missing girl is three feet tall, weighs 35 pounds and has brown eyes and brown hair. According to police, she was last seen wearing grey pants and a long-sleeved shirt with pink around the collar and is likely barefoot. Claire was last seen at her residence near Newman Avenue in Montreal's LaSalle borough Sunday morning at around 9:45 a.m. ET. The Sûreté du Québec (SQ), Quebec's provincial police force, says Claire's mother reported her missing a few hours later at a store in Coteau-du-Lac, about 50 kilometres west of Montreal. An employee of the store said the woman drove her car into the parking lot and ran into the store in a panic. CBC News is not identifying the employee because she is not authorized to speak on behalf of the store. The employee mentioned that the woman said she'd lost her child and couldn't remember what happened. Another employee then called 911. On Wednesday morning, SQ spokesperson Éloïse Cossette said investigators had received hundreds of tips for the case. The search efforts have been focused on areas near the junction of highways 30 and 20 as well as areas near Highway 40, west of the island of Montreal — an area police said is difficult to access due to dense vegetation. WATCH | Details on the investigation into toddler's disappearance: Mother of missing Montreal toddler charged with child abandonment 12 hours ago Duration 2:02 Don't try to search for missing girl, police tells public Police are discouraging citizens from conducting their own searches as they might destroy tracks and hamper the SQ's efforts. On Wednesday, the SQ reiterated that the public can contribute to the search efforts by looking out for the grey Ford Escape with the licence plate K50 FVE that the mother used between 9:45 a.m. and around 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. "She left LaSalle and made it to Coteau-du-Lac — that's a very large zone," said Cossette. "We're calling on potential witnesses in case they saw that vehicle on some isolated road or if they have security cameras in front of their homes or businesses or on their vehicles ... Ultimately, we want to recreate the entire route that the mother followed with her daughter." According to Radio-Canada sources, Todd didn't seem lucid and made confused remarks which complicates the work of investigators. Sources also told Radio-Canada an analysis of Todd's phone revealed searches for children's funeral urns, as was first reported by the Journal de Montréal on Tuesday. A video posted by Todd in the hours before Claire's disappearance has surfaced on TikTok. Radio-Canada has confirmed the account belongs to her. In the short video, Todd is holding Claire and speaks into the camera saying: "You try that again and this is going to get ugly." The caption reads: "Have you come up against a mother with nothing to lose????" CBC does not know the context in which the video was filmed. Quebec provincial police said it is not commenting on the video. The charge against Todd alleges that she abandoned her daughter and put her life and health in danger. If found guilty, the maximum sentence is five years in prison. On Monday evening, police announced they had found a dead brown Chihuahua around Highway 30 in the Vaudreuil-Dorion area. The dog matched the description of the one thought to be with the girl when she was last seen. As of Tuesday evening, police were still working to confirm that it's the same dog.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Daily Mail
A massive search operation launched on the Firth of Clyde amid reports of a man overboard
A massive search operation was launched in the Firth of Clyde yesterday afternoon amid concern a man had gone overboard. The passenger was reported missing on the Gourock to Dunoon service after disappearing while fetching something from his car. The man, believed to be in his sixties, vanished from the Western Ferries vessel shortly after telling his wife that he needed to get something from the boot of their vehicle. When he failed to come back, she raised the alarm. Emergency services including the RNLI, Coastguard and Police Scotland officers joined the search after the alert was raised at around 1.30pm. CalMac ferries stopped services for safety reasons amid the operation and said its MV Ali Cat was aiding the search for the missing passenger. A Coastguard helicopter flew a search pattern over the Gourock- Dunoon route and surrounding areas. It was airborne for most of the afternoon before refuelling at Prestwick at 5.38pm. Coastguard crews searched on foot along the Gourock waterfront while police officers were deployed to the nearby ferry terminal. Western Ferries also suspended sailings on the route. In Dunoon, a Western Ferries operator said he had been told no boats would serve the 20-minute journey for the rest of the day, or at least until 'the search' was over. He said: 'I've just been told not to let anyone else into the car park and inform people that the only way they're going to get out of here today is by road.' One hotelier, whose rooms were filled with passengers stranded on the Dunoon side of the route, said: 'The way the current's going he could be at Holy Loch or Helensburgh by now.' Another passenger said the incident had left everyone on board 'traumatised'. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said: 'HM Coastguard are responding to reports of a person overboard between the Hunter's Quay and Gourock area. 'An HM Coastguard search and rescue helicopter has been tasked to conduct a search, alongside Coastguard rescue teams from Largs and Dunoon, in addition to RNLI lifeboats from Helensburgh and Largs.' Late last night the emergency services said the search had been called off until morning.
News.com.au
11-06-2025
- News.com.au
Search to find missing man Finn Coyle, 21, who was last seen leaving his Perth hills home six days ago
An urgent search is underway to find a missing 21-year-old man who was last seen leaving his home on foot six days ago. Finn Coyle left his home on Tanner Rd in Carmel, in the Perth hills, about 2.30pm on Friday and failed to return home. A search operation involving about 50 police and SES volunteers using a drone, dogs and horses have been scouring dense bushland near Mr Coyle's home to locate him. His brother Connor Coyle told media Finn had been struggling with mental health and they were worried about him because it was completely out of character. 'It's entirely unlike him,' he said. 'We're all very worried for his wellbeing and his welfare, he's known to spend a lot of time in the local bush in the hill's area. 'I think he's very resourceful and he's a great young man, but he's suffering a lot of mental health. 'We're losing a generation of young people to mental health.' Detective Sergeant Brad Robinson said a team had been searching a massive area of thick bushland near Mr Coyle's home since Tuesday. 'We believe he's probably not too far from home, he likes being in the bush, that's the type of person he is so we're concentrating our search efforts at this stage in and around here,' he said. 'He's pretty resourceful this young fella, he likes being in the bush, and he likes to keep to himself. 'We don't know whether he's fallen and injured himself, it could be any scenario so we just want all those people that live around here to have a really good look around their backyards and properties.' Mr Coyle is described as being 187cm tall, with a slim build, short brown hair and green eyes. Police urged anyone who lives in the area to check their CCTV and dashcam footage and to contact police immediately with any information about his whereabouts.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Yahoo
Search operation underway for man, 20, who possibly drowned at Verdun Beach
Montreal police and firefighters are searching for a 20-year-old man who went missing in the waters of the St. Lawrence River near Verdun Beach on Saturday afternoon. Police say several 911 calls were placed at about 5:20 p.m. concerning a man in distress in the water. When police arrived at the scene, they were unable to locate him from the shore, police spokesperson Caroline Chèvrefils said. Nautical patrols with Montreal police and firefighters are currently on the water. The Canadian Coast Guard has also been called in to help with the search operation, Chèvrefils said. According to preliminary information, the man was partaking in a sporting activity in the water when he started to feel unwell, she said. Police have evacuated the beach and are interviewing witnesses.
