RCMP have confirmed two children who went missing in Nova Scotia’s Pictou County nearly a month ago were seen in public the day before their disappearance.
Lilly Sullivan, 6, and her brother Jack Sullivan, 4, have been missing since May 2, when police received a 911 call from their mother and stepfather. Police say they were told the children wandered away from their home in Lansdowne Station, a sparsely populated area about 140 kilometres northeast of Halifax.
The disappearance sparked an extensive six-day search through 5.5 square kilometres of mostly dense woods and included upward of 160 search and rescue officials, dogs, helicopters and drones.
The search was scaled back on May 7, but underwater recovery teams scoured bodies of water in the Lansdowne Station area on May 8 and 9. Search and rescue crews were then called back to the community on May 17 and 18, focusing on specific areas around the children’s home on Gairloch Road.
In a news release Wednesday, RCMP said they have collected hours of video from the areas surrounding Lansdowne Station.
Investigators have confirmed Lilly and Jack were seen in public with family members on the afternoon of May 1, based on the details police have gathered.
RCMP declined an interview request from CBC News.
The children’s stepfather, Daniel Martell, has said the children were home from school on May 1 and 2 due to illness. They were also home on April 30 for a planned professional development day at the school.
As RCMP remain tight-lipped about their investigation into the disappearance of two young Nova Scotia children, a Lansdowne woman who lives near them says investigators have asked for her trail camera footage spanning days before the siblings were reported missing. Nicola Seguin has the story.
Police seek dashcam footage
The release said police are asking anyone who has dashcam footage or video along Gairloch Road between 12 p.m. AT on April 28 and 12 p.m. AT on May 2 to contact them.
Last week, a resident who lives near where the children went missing said police had collected hours of footage from the seven trail camera scattered around her 16-hectare property.
The Mounties said they have received more than 355 tips and have formally interviewed more than 50 people, with more interviews planned in the coming days.
“We understand people’s desire for answers and updates. However, as this is an active investigation, we’re unable to discuss details of our ongoing work,” said Cpl. Sandy Matharu of the Northeast Nova RCMP Major Crime Unit.
