Police have released a sketch of a little girl whose body was found in a dumpster outside of a construction site in Toronto last month.
In a press release, Toronto police said on May 2, at 4:46 p.m., officers were called to the Castle Frank Road and Dale Avenue area after human remains were found in a dumpster used at a construction site of a vacant home.
Police said a post-mortem examination was conducted and determined the girl was between the ages of four and seven.
She is described as Black, of African or mixed-African descent.
Police said she is three-foot-six-inches tall with a thin build, and has black curly hair that was sectioned in four short ponytails. Two of the ponytails were braided and secured with black and blue elastics.
According to police, the girl had all her teeth.
Police said investigators believe her remains were left in the area sometime between April 28 at 12 p.m., and May 2 at 4:45 p.m.
“However, she may have been deceased as early as the summer or fall of 2021, or earlier,” the release reads.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Toronto Police Insp. Hank Idsinga said officers identified 58 missing children reports across Canada for investigative consideration.
“We have contacted the lead investigator of every single one of those cases to collect further information. Several children identified on this list were reported to be in other countries involved in a parental abduction or custody dispute,” Idsinga told reporters.
Idsinga said police services assigned to the cases have been in “constant contact with the Canada Border Services Agency and Interpol.”
However, Idsinga said police do not believe any of those children have re-entered Canada.
What’s more, Idsinga said investigators found no evidence to link the girl to any of the 58 missing children cases.
Idsinga said police believe it is “unlikely” that the child was ever reported missing.
Idsinga said, though, that investigators “can’t exclude the possibility” that the young girl has been reported missing somewhere overseas, adding that the investigation is still ongoing.
The cause of her death has not yet been determined.
According to Idsinga, investigators are still waiting on a few results which may help to determine how the girl died.
He said investigators are still awaiting results from the forensic entomologist, and the toxicology report.
Idsinga said the girl’s cause of death “may remain undetermined for quite some time.”
Police said images of two items of the girl’s clothing were previously released in hopes that someone may recognize them and help identify the victim.
Idsinga said police have also followed up on many tips generated after officers released the photos of the articles of clothing.
“If you have any further information, no matter how small, please call us immediately,” he said.
Idsinga said school boards in the city are also “doing their diligent work” to determine if any students went missing who may match the description of the victim.
However, Idsinga said the girl may have been too young to have been in the school system, or may have never been enrolled.
Officers have now also identified a vehicle investigators are seeking to locate.
Police are searching for a 2011 to 2014 dark coloured Porsche Cayenne SUV.
Idsinga said the vehicle was captured on video “stopping on Dale Avenue in the area of the dumpster on Thursday, April 28 2022 at 10:26 p.m.”
“It stops there for 21 seconds,” he said. “We have been able to track the vehicle to and from the area.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact police or Crime Stoppers.