Volunteers Launch Renewed Search for Missing Nova Scotia Siblings

Dozens of volunteers will embark on a renewed search this weekend for siblings Lilly and Jack Sullivan, who have been missing for over six months. This effort, focused on the riverbanks of the Middle River in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, is coordinated by the Ontario-based non-profit organization, Bring Me Home.

Nick Oldrieve, co-founder of the organization, expressed optimism about the search. “I think that if those children wound up in the Middle River of Pictou, then there’s a high possibility we locate them on Saturday,” he stated. The search will commence at dawn and continue until dusk, with the possibility of extending into Sunday if necessary.

Lilly and Jack, aged six and four at the time of their disappearance, were last seen on May 2, 2023, near their home in Lansdowne Station, a location surrounded by dense woodlands. According to their family, the children wandered away from home that morning.

In September, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) deployed two specially trained police dogs to search a 40-kilometre area surrounding the children’s home. Unfortunately, the dogs did not detect any human remains.

The upcoming search will involve around 40 local volunteers who will cover a substantial area directly across from the Sullivans’ residence. Oldrieve noted that changes in water levels could have affected the search area. “If they were underwater at the time of the initial searching along that river, they would have surfaced and they would’ve gone downriver a bit,” he explained.

District 7 councillor for Pictou County, Donald Parker, expressed support for the renewed search efforts. “The RCMP have done everything they can here, and the search and rescue have done a tremendous job and they just couldn’t find them,” he said. “But if we can get other searchers coming in and whether they find them or not, I don’t know, but at least they’re trying.”

At a vigil last month marking Jack’s fifth birthday, his stepfather, Daniel Martell, shared his changing perspective on the case. “I believe at this point in the case that they’re not in the woods and they didn’t wander into the woods,” he told Global News on October 29, 2023. He emphasized his collaboration with the RCMP’s major crimes unit to explore leads and gather information.

The children’s mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray, recently released a heartfelt statement through Bring Me Home. “I will never stop searching for my children until they are found and brought home safe and sound. Someone, somewhere knows something so please bring my babies home,” she wrote.

As of last month, the RCMP stated they are still reviewing forensic testing results and over 860 tips, in addition to thousands of video files related to the ongoing investigation. The community remains hopeful that this weekend’s search efforts will yield new leads in the quest to locate Lilly and Jack Sullivan.