After a grueling day wading through rushing river waters and climbing through dense forests, some relatives of two missing Nova Scotia children were disappointed that their final search for the siblings before the snow fell did not result in obvious progress.
Some items of interest were discovered during the search for Lilly Sullivan, 6, and Jack Sullivan, 5, on Saturday in Lansdowne, N.S., but RCMP say none of the items have any relevance to the disappearance of the two children.
About 30 volunteers descended on the sparsely populated community to search for any sign of the brothers, who disappeared more than six months ago.
Many hoped to find the children.
“That’s not what happened today,” said Angeline Maloney-Arsenault, a childhood friend of the children’s mother. “I feel like we have more questions, especially about how to find things in the forest.
“I feel disappointed.”
Lilly and Jack were reported missing on May 2, when their mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray, called 911 and reported that they had wandered away from their home, which borders thick woods.
His disappearance sparked an extensive search network that spanned 8.5 square kilometers of mostly dense forest and involved about 160 ground search and rescue volunteers, service dogs, drones and helicopters.
RCMP cadaver dogs also searched a total of 40 kilometers over three days in late September.
Saturday’s search was led by the Ontario-based nonprofit Please Bring Me Home. The volunteers, many of them family members and friends of the children, gathered in the Union Center Community Room and divided into six groups, intended to cover approximately five kilometers each along the banks of the Middle Pictou River.
Nick Oldrieve, the organisation’s chief executive, said the search would focus on waterways that may have been moved or clues obscured during previous searches.
“Enough time has passed to revisit these waterways… it’s very likely that they are there, if the theory is that they diverted,” said Oldrieve, who drove 18 hours from his home in Ontario to manage the search.
His organization also conducted a search on Friday in the Springhill area for Jessie Morrissey, who has been missing since February 2022.
Oldrieve said Please Bring Me Home has helped locate more than 50 missing people since 2018. Last year, they located the remains of Eric Spencer in Honey Harbour, Ont., who had been missing for six years.
On Saturday the teams faced extremely difficult conditions.
At times, volunteers were forced to wade through waist-deep water, climb fallen trees and push back through thick undergrowth, all while keeping their eyes peeled for clues.
Those efforts turned up some items of interest, however, the RCMP said in an email Sunday that investigators reviewed the materials and found them to be “no relevance.”
Volunteers found a black children’s T-shirt with a blue design. Oldreive said a photo of a T-shirt was sent to the RCMP, who then sent it to the children’s mother, but she did not recognize it.
A geocaching kit was also discovered. Geocaching involves hiding a container of items, such as papers and trinkets, and posting the GPS coordinates to an app for other people to find.
The kit had a log book containing the name of the children’s stepfather. It said: “Daniel Martell, May 3, 2014, left a quarter of 2012.” Martell and his family have lived in the area for decades.
A blue blanket and a children’s bicycle were also found.
The searchers also visited the area where A drone detected two heat sources around 11:30 pm on May 2. In an email last week, the RCMP said the signatures were investigated on foot by an RCMP officer and determined to be not relevant. It is believed that they were emitted by a bear in the area.
One group also found bones wrapped in a blanket, but Oldrieve said the group’s anthropologist determined they were animal bones after they sent him a photo.
Oldrieve said Please Bring Me Home will compile a report to send to the RCMP, which will include photographs of the items and their GPS coordinates.
One group endured a tense interaction with a local property owner as they walked along the river. Standing at the top of a steep bank, the man shouted at the searchers to leave and told them he had dangerous animals: two rams.
Permission had not been obtained from each individual landowner along the river where the search was being conducted. Oldrieve had told the group to call him if they encountered anyone who didn’t want them there. He said he spoke briefly with the property owner earlier that day.
The case has caused tensions in the community and between Jack and Lilly’s family members. The mystery has attracted international media attention and led to accusations from all sides.
The normally quiet village of Lansdowne has seen its fair share of searchers, police, journalists and casual observers since the children went missing.
The RCMP continues to say the case is being investigated under the Missing Persons Act and is not believed to be a crime.
The Mounties say Northeast Nova’s major crimes unit has been following up on information obtained from forensic evidence, more than 860 tips and 8,060 video files. Multiple units are working on the case and have been since May.
But Belynda Gray, the children’s paternal grandmother, is getting impatient.
Gray said she was “a little apprehensive” after Saturday’s search. Through tears, Gray said she still believes the children are in the woods.
“I know they’re out there,” said Gray, whose daughter was helping with the search.
Oldrieve said that based on what he has seen on the ground now, including the many orange and pink ribbons marking areas that have already been searched, and after speaking with authorities, family members and locals, he has a hard time believing they went deep into the woods.
“Today I find it more and more unlikely,” he said.
However, Oldrieve confirmed on Sunday that accredited cadaver dogs, trained to detect the scent of human remains, would return to Lansdowne this week to conduct a search.
Cheryl Robinson, a family friend of Lilly and Jack, led a search team Saturday. Despite being disappointed by the results, she is still hopeful.
“We definitely won’t stop looking for them.”
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