CANADA Canada - Jack, 4 & Lilly Sullivan, 6, Vulnerable, wandered from home 10am, Gairloch Rd, Landsdowne Station, Pictou County, NS, 2 May 2025 #5

[MistyWaters]

Another possibility is that he was misled into believing his daughter was in CPS care, perhaps to temporarily prevent him from having contact with MBM and family. And then, like you said, he shows up at CPS asking for visitation and they deny him without any further details. CPS would have very strict privacy rules and almost certainly wouldn't share any information with a visitor who just showed up at their office...

That could certainly be it, yes CPS saying he couldn’t have contact is rather reminiscent to the police telling MBM not to talk to media. Most often people do not question when someone offers a reason relying on an authority figure and it can sometimes be used as a convenient excuse to deny.
JMO

 

[AddyFinch]

Has there been a ransom letter?

 

[Dreamcherry]

Another possibility is that he was misled into believing his daughter was in CPS care, perhaps to temporarily prevent him from having contact with MBM and family. And then, like you said, he shows up at CPS asking for visitation and they deny him without any further details. CPS would have very strict privacy rules and almost certainly wouldn't share any information with a visitor who just showed up at their office...

I know that here, you can't even get into the office. He would have to ask a security guard when he gets off the elevator, who would know absolutely nothing. I think it's most likely that he just misunderstood the situation, imo.

 

[su5ie]

Just been reading up on the summer wells case , remarkably similar environments and narrative.

A lot about family life was published after time past I wonder will this be the case here .

Both being remote places you would think the chances of a stranger abduction would be considerably rare . I would imagine most people would know each other in these rural communities even if it was just on nodding terms . A strange car or stranger in the area would stick out like a sore thumb imo

I feel in both cases either the kids wandered too far into nature and got lost or family / friend have harmed them . I have to agree with previous posters it seeming less likely to have been a stranger abduction.

There seem to be a lot of circumstances with both the families the same too :
#1Grandma living alone in trailer/ camper van on property
#2Speculated drug and drink abuse
#3Speculated poverty and unkempt homes
#4Child( ren) being unsupervised for a time
#5Alleged presence of dogs on both properties that didn't alert to stranger (s)
#6Parents alleging they were only distracted / sleeping for short period that doesn't seem to add up moo
#7Both families claiming they did polygraph tests and AFAIK neither claims have been confirmed by LE .
#8CPS involvement after child (ren)go missing and siblings taken or alleged to have been taken into protective custody.( I have to add this is a revelation to me as I've never heard of cps taking remaining siblings from parents of missing children before not even in the maddie mccann case did this occur even though that was a serious occurrence of child neglect imo leaving 3 kids under the age of 3 alone while you go for dinner )
#9Both moms shortly after reporting of children going missing behave in weird manner. Summers mum allegedly not speaking with LE and hiding out in her home and Maleyha going awol and into effective hiding .
#10 Both families seem to have discrepancies in their intial statements imo

Just odd all together, and I'm sure posters more acquainted with the summer wells case will probably have more they can see similar. This is just a list from what I've seen in the past couple of hours and with no previous knowledge of summer's case

 

[Jayevee]

I haven't posted but I have been following this thread since it first started.

I am of the belief, like many of you, that unfortunately the outcome of this isn't going to be what we all hope for. A lot of other past cases have been discussed as far as having outcomes no one really expected, Elizabeth Smart for example. This weekend I saw something that reminded me of a case I had totally forgotten about that I don't recall seeing anyone else mention. Charles Bothuell V from 2014. He was reported missing by his father and step mom, saying he had walked away from their home and didn't return. Many searches were done of the home by police, including with dogs iirc, but almost 2 weeks later during another search of the home police found him in a hidden room in the basement where he had been locked up by his parents (they were later charged with child abuse, etc). The father was actually on Nancy Grace when it was announced he had been found and she told him on live tv...I remember the video going viral. All of this to say that there have been many cases with very strange/unimaginable outcomes that honestly anything is possible.

Disappearance of Charles Bothuell V

 

[AddyFinch]

I wonder if LE thoroughly checked under that trailer and RV? And the chicken house or shed ? There could be a root cellar under those floor boards, or worse. Did anyone or media actually see LE or Ident. searching? Have they reworked the property for wells, long drops, septics in their repeated searches??

 

[AddyFinch]

Something that sticks in my mind and gives me an uncomfortable feeling is ... DM said on news...

“Put your focus around Maleyha and toward the kids,” he said, referring to the children’s mother. “Don’t attack Maleyha because her mental health is going to be reflected on our daughter, so I don’t want anyone attacking Maleyha anymore.” CTV

Did he mean the 16 month old child will pick up on negative vibes from her mother, or did he mean the mother might be capable of taking her anger out on the baby or acting out in a harmful way towards the baby? Deflected on the baby? Is he insinuating she was abusive with kids?
Is mother's mental health now fragile because of her two children missing, or was it fragile prior to them going missing?
Does anyone know who raised the missing kids after her relationship with bio father broke up? Did bio father have custody or did she? Does anyone know if he attended any of the searches?

 

[ChatteringBirds]

These were the only cases I could find so I'm guessing it's extremely rare

True, it's rare that more than one sibling disappears at a time, but there are other cases: Diamond & Tionda Bradley, Scott & Amy Fandel, Dannette & Jeannette Millbrook, 3 brothers: Ken, David, & Dan Klein in Minneapolis in 1951...

There are some other cases I'm leaving out, because parent or step-parent is an obvious POI. (One heartbreaking case, a mother lost her only two sons and their stepfather's story made no sense.)

Also quite a few cases of two children/teens who were friends and disappeared together, never to be heard from again.

 

[Ontario Mom]

Something that sticks in my mind and gives me an uncomfortable feeling is ... DM said on news...

“Put your focus around Maleyha and toward the kids,” he said, referring to the children’s mother. “Don’t attack Maleyha because her mental health is going to be reflected on our daughter, so I don’t want anyone attacking Maleyha anymore.” CTV

Did he mean the 16 month old child will pick up on negative vibes from her mother, or did he mean the mother might be capable of taking her anger out on the baby or acting out in a harmful way towards the baby? Deflected on the baby? Is he insinuating she was abusive with kids?
Is mother's mental health now fragile because of her two children missing, or was it fragile prior to them going missing?
Does anyone know who raised the missing kids after her relationship with bio father broke up? Did bio father have custody or did she? Does anyone know if he attended any of the searches?

I believe he meant the criticism of her in the public arena was having a horrible affect on her, which would in turn also affect the toddler, due to mom being so distraught.

There's practically zero info in the MSM about the kid's bio dad.

 

[iveyguy]

I don't believe that there has been a thorough search of the entire property, at least not to the extent that you might expect. If this has happened, it hasn't been reported. As I posted on the previous thread, this is still a missing persons case, and LE needs reasonable evidence of a crime in order to secure a search warrant. DM seems to be fully cooperative, so perhaps this is all a moot point and LE already has his permission to search. But I do not believe that there has been a massive investigative search of his property, as this seems like it would be newsworthy.

 

[su5ie]

I don't believe that there has been a thorough search of the entire property, at least not to the extent that you might expect. If this has happened, it hasn't been reported. As I posted on the previous thread, this is still a missing persons case, and LE needs reasonable evidence of a crime in order to secure a search warrant. DM seems to be fully cooperative, so perhaps this is all a moot point and LE already has his permission to search. But I do not believe that there has been a massive investigative search of his property, as this seems like it would be newsworthy.

This is what I want to see happening or at least a DM or local LE verifying that it did . I've seen photos of all different angles of the property and there is so much crawl space or places to hide a body . The thing that is usually wheeled out is animal activity namely scavengers but I have researched this for another case on WS and most of the time it is not something that is noticed. Most scavenging of a cadaver is done at night and even then this is mainly rodents and insects . Blowflys which most people think of only feed on absolutely rotten flesh when the body starts to become juice as they say . If bodies could be located by animal activity there would be no missing people whose skeletal remains where located out in the open years later .


A case on webslueths I was interested in was jay slater , same comments were made re animal activity and it peaked my curiosity. Animals did not point the way and birds did not circle above his body and the area was searched and searched some more but he had fallen into a ravine with an overhang and wasn't spotted by drones or seasoned searchers for weeks . And it was not as densely forested as this case but equally as rough terrain

So if LE have prehaps over looked checking the immediate grounds as in all the hiding holes or crawl spaces a child can get into . It is a tragic oversight. You are right unless LE have reason to suspect foul play they will not seek or get a warrant but with Daniel cooperating would it not make sense to fingertip search the grounds .

This always annoys me that the home is the last place police forces check . Surely when you have cooperation it's the time to strike not when there has been time to cover up moo

 

[Slebby]

There has really only been 2 sources of information - the official news releases from law enforcement and DMs accounts of what happened/ is happening which have appeared in the news.
I personally find that some of what DM has said does not ring true. First, I see him presenting a grandiose description of his own actions. Do we really believe he ran through waist-deep water (try it, you don’t get very far!), where was this water? Or that he was running ahead of helicopter and drones? Or screaming until his throat hurt?
It’s just my opinion, but I think he’s describing what he “thinks” a heroic stepdad would do. Like he’s picturing some action hero (Bruce Willis? The Rock?) running ahead of drones and helicopters. He’s pointing at himself. Me, my actions, my thoroughness, me searching every road, culvert, my stress, my throat.
Second, his crying seems fake to me. No tears, no snot, no actual loss of control that I know I experience when I cry - sobs, shuddering. He wipes away non-existent tears then carries on speaking normally. Again, it’s as if he “thinks” he should cry, so he’s putting on a show of crying. IMO.

Why he behaves in these ways is anyone’s guess and above my pay grade.

This is all just my own humble opinion.

 

[TMich6811]

I also think it’s possible that because they couldn’t search (warrant and evidence) that anything that was previously there is no longer there

 

[Dpdan]

I'd be so shocked and disappointed if they hadn't searched the homes. Would they really take all that time and effort searching forests if they hadn't checked the place where the children were last seen and heard?

 

[FansBlowing]

I wish we knew what kind of dog Daniel's mother had. She lived in the RV with multiple cats and a dog. Was this a big dog, a pit bull, or some other dangerous breed?

 

[Slebby]

I wish we knew what kind of dog Daniel's mother had. She lived in the RV with multiple cats and a dog. Was this a big dog, a pit bull, or some other dangerous breed?

Certainly an interesting idea. There is a current murder trial in the US in which the defense has presented an alternate theory as to the cause of death, dog attack. A particularly vicious dog could certainly fatally harm 2 small children quickly. Terrifying thought.
IMO

 

[su5ie]

I wish we knew what kind of dog Daniel's mother had. She lived in the RV with multiple cats and a dog. Was this a big dog, a pit bull, or some other dangerous breed?

Regardless of breed and I understand what you are saying re dangerous breeds but for a family dog not to alert to a stranger or even follow children of the family even if only for a short bit and turn back .

Maybe I watched too many lassie films in my childhood but even small dogs like Jack Russell's will go berserk if a stranger approaches the home or yard . The dog whether the mother's or DMs will not differentiate between family members or whose side of the yard to protect once they live on the one property . I'm assuming here that 5he family was well integrated with each other .

I'm opined to think the kids came to harm on the property or within a mile of it anyways

 

[su5ie]

What happens to our bodies after we die

The breakdown of our bodies after death can be fascinating – if you dare to delve into the details. Mo Costandi investigates.

www.bbc.com

Decomposition and decay | Trees for Life

Decomposition and decay are vital processes, playing an essential role in the breakdown of organic matter, making it available for new organisms to utilise.

treesforlife.org.uk

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S037907380100411X

A few articles if anyone is interested in the decomposition process for reference.

If larger predators cannot access a body whether access is limited from human activity around the body such as searchers ,media presence etc or for example access can't be got because a child is in a crawl space under a mobile home or trailer Smaller insects and possibly rodents will be the only thing present.

 

[Ontario Mom]

I'd be so shocked and disappointed if they hadn't searched the homes. Would they really take all that time and effort searching forests if they hadn't checked the place where the children were last seen and heard?

BBM

No. These are "highly trained RCMP major crime and forensic investigators" Update: Missing children investigation and search in Pictou County | Royal Canadian Mounted Police

I'm not even a cop and I know the first thing you do is fully clear the home/yard/outbuildings, etc. before extending the search outward. Additional searches have included "seventy-eight trained searchers from nine ground search and rescue organizations, including, Colchester County, Pictou County, Halifax, Strait Area, East Hants, Eastern Shore, Musquodoboit Valley, Pugwash, and Eastern Shore" Ground search continued today in Pictou County in support of ongoing missing persons investigation | Royal Canadian Mounted Police

As in every case LE investigates, there are all sorts of things they've done, learned, ruled out, questioned, etc. that never make into the media. At this point, I have no reason at all to believe LE have not done their jobs in searching for these kids.

 

[Ontario Mom]

There has really only been 2 sources of information - the official news releases from law enforcement and DMs accounts of what happened/ is happening which have appeared in the news.
I personally find that some of what DM has said does not ring true. First, I see him presenting a grandiose description of his own actions. Do we really believe he ran through waist-deep water (try it, you don’t get very far!), where was this water? Or that he was running ahead of helicopter and drones? Or screaming until his throat hurt?
It’s just my opinion, but I think he’s describing what he “thinks” a heroic stepdad would do. Like he’s picturing some action hero (Bruce Willis? The Rock?) running ahead of drones and helicopters. He’s pointing at himself. Me, my actions, my thoroughness, me searching every road, culvert, my stress, my throat.
Second, his crying seems fake to me. No tears, no snot, no actual loss of control that I know I experience when I cry - sobs, shuddering. He wipes away non-existent tears then carries on speaking normally. Again, it’s as if he “thinks” he should cry, so he’s putting on a show of crying. IMO.

Why he behaves in these ways is anyone’s guess and above my pay grade.

This is all just my own humble opinion.

I don't have any reason not to believe him. He stated that as soon as they realized the kids were missing, he was outside looking for them. He didn't make it sound like it was an action movie or that he was some sort of hero, he said he was searching before the drones and helicopters even showed up, and yelling for them so much it made his throat hurt. I suspect he was being asked questions, and those were the answers he gave. Same as anyone else would do, trying to get the media to report on the kids being missing.

I can't speak to his emotional expressions. I can only imagine he's trying to keep his composure whenever he spoke to the media.