Missing Toronto girl found safe after nearly two weeks, police say
Written by The Canadian Press on May 28, 2026
TORONTO — A 14-year-old Toronto girl whose disappearance from North York sparked an intensive search has been found safe after nearly two weeks, police said Thursday.
The teen was found in a home around 1 p.m. Thursday, police said. Esther, who is on the autism spectrum, looked to be in “good physical health” and was being assessed in hospital, said Supt. Don Belanger.
“Our investigation will now turn to whether or not there is any evidence of criminality associated to her prolonged disappearance,” Belanger said.
Thursday’s brief police news conference sparked a flurry of questions from reporters regarding the circumstances under which Esther was found, most of which remained unanswered.
When asked what led police to the home, and whether they were called by someone inside the house, Belanger did not respond directly, instead referring to the “painstaking” video canvasses undertaken by investigators.
“That’s certainly contributed to us to getting to where we are today,” he said.
Officers and volunteers led parallel efforts to find the girl, who police said was initially reported missing from the Earl Bales Park area on May 15.
Officers, canine units and community members picked apart the North York park as drones whirred overhead looking for any signs of Esther. Police would later say her last reported sighting was just after midnight near Bathurst Street and Hotspur Road on May 16.
The search was upgraded last week to a Level 1 operation, a rare designation police say was used in only five of nearly 3,100 missing person reports last year.
A police tipline and website were set up for the investigation while Jewish community groups helped rally volunteers and set up search parties to look for the teen, who family members called “Esti.”
“I just want to start by saying that thousands of people came out to help from all walks of life, not just from our community, but from the entire community,” Maureen Leshem, who acted as a spokesperson for the family during the search, told reporters Thursday.
“We can breathe again.”
As the search dragged on this week, the family announced a $25,000 reward backed by anonymous donors for information leading to Esther’s safe return.
Posters put up by volunteers were reportedly torn down in some places, a development roundly criticized by police and Leshem.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 28, 2026.
The Canadian Press