Toronto police say two women have been charged after a six-year-old girl reported missing in Scarborough on Tuesday was found safe in North York.
In a statement released Tuesday night, Toronto police said they were called at 7:41 a.m. to the Midland Avenue and Eglinton Avenue East area with a report the girl was missing. Officers from different parts of the service were called in to assist with the search.
But at 12:52 p.m., police said the girl was reported found near Dufferin Street and Eglinton Avenue West – less than 15 kilometres from where she was last seen.
The girl was assessed by paramedics, but was not taken to hospital. Police said earlier that she was co-operating with officers.
Police said late Tuesday, two women, who officers said they haven’t named in order to protect the identity of the girl, were arrested. One of the women was charged with public mischief and will appear in a Toronto court at a later time. The second woman was charged with obstructing a peace officer and will appear in a Scarborough court at a later time. The circumstances leading to the charges weren’t clear as of Tuesday night.
During a news conference Tuesday afternoon, Toronto Police Supt. Mark Barkley said officers weren’t looking for suspects.
“There’s nothing at this time that leads us down that pathway, but we continue to investigate,” he said, adding that there is no indication of past instances of the girl running away from home.
Const. David Hopkinson said earlier in the day that police escalated the search to a “level three” as they feared for her safety.
“It is the highest-level search that we have,” Hopkinson said.
“It employs more resources than the other searches.”
Members of the community also came out to help in the search. Pictures of the child were shown around the area and people helped police to search nearby buildings.
“I’m a mother and it’s heartbreaking, I wouldn’t want that to happen to my child,” Nadra Abdihakim told Global News prior to the girl being found.
Meanwhile, officers said the investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call police at 416-808-4104.
—With files from Jessica Patton and The Canadian Press
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