Police have charged a Toronto father in connection with the alleged abduction of his four-year-old daughter from her mother’s Aurora, Ont. home in the middle of the night earlier this week.
York Regional police allege the child was taken around 4:20 a.m. Monday when her 35-year-old father broke in through a window at his ex-wife’s house in Aurora, north of Toronto, and then fled with the child in a minivan.
An Amber Alert went out around five hours later, but was cancelled after the girl was found and her father arrested when their minivan crashed outside of Ottawa following a police chase.
READ MORE: Amber Alert cancelled and allegedly abducted girl hospitalized after crash
Ontario Provincial Police said officers in the Upper Ottawa Valley area had spotted the vehicle driving aggressively at high speeds in Bancroft, Ont. and attempted to stop it before cutting off their pursuit.
Not long after, the van failed to take a turn and rolled over in Pembroke, Ont., according to provincial police watchdog the Special Investigations Unit.
OPP Const. Shawn Peever told reporters at the scene the girl and her father were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
WATCH: Amber alert ends for Ontario girl, resulting in father’s arrest, vehicle rollover
The Ornge air ambulance service said it transferred the girl in stable condition from Pembroke Regional Hospital to the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa.
Police said Thursday the father has been charged with abduction with no custody order, break-and-enter and two counts of assault.
He remains in hospital with minor injuries and made an audio appearance in court ahead of a scheduled Newmarket court appearance on Thursday.
READ MORE: Ontario provincial police to review Amber Alert response after 4-hour gap
Police are reviewing the release of the Amber Alert, which investigators waited to issue until around 9 a.m. after they received information that suggested the child’s life was in danger.
OPP Sgt. Kristine Rae says York Regional police, which requested the Amber Alert, can also seek feedback on its handling of the case from a provincial steering committee.
The SIU investigates police-involved incidents where someone has been seriously injured or dies.
Police said the investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact the Integrated Domestic Violence Unit at 1-866-876-5423, ext.2480 Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS, leave an anonymous tip online at http://www.1800222tips.com, or text your tip to CRIMES (274637) starting with the word YORK.
With files from Will Campbell and The Canadian Press
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