CHATHAM, Ont. – Police say two girls who are members of the ultra-orthodox Jewish sect Lev Tahor have left foster care in Ontario, but are safe.
Const. Renee Cowell with Chatham-Kent police didn’t provide any details, saying further information would have to come from Chatham-Kent Children’s Services.
The organization says it cannot, under law, provide any specifics concerning children who may or may not be in their care.
Lev Tahor was the subject of a youth protection investigation in Quebec over allegations of neglect and child abuse before they fled to Chatham, Ont.
WATCH: 16×9 chief correspondent, Carolyn Jarvis travels to Lev Tahor where 16×9 was granted unprecedented access.
Leaders of the small community have acknowledged the children are given a religious education, but have denied allegations of abuse and underage marriages.
The group moved to Ontario late last year, but families fled in March after a judge ruled that 14 children in the community would be sent back to Quebec and placed in foster care.
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Seven children were apprehended and placed in care, while six others are believed to be in Guatemala.
An Ontario judge later ruled that 13 children who are part of the group do not have to be sent back to Quebec, saying they shouldn’t bear the consequences of their parents’ legal fight.
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