Quebec police suspend ground search for father whose daughters were found dead

ST-APOLLINAIRE, Que. — Quebec provincial police suspended an intensive ground search Saturday for a missing father whose daughters were found dead one week ago in a wooded area southwest of Quebec City.

Provincial police said in a statement that after 10 days of looking for Martin Carpentier, they are changing their approach to the investigation but remain determined to find him.

“Since July 8, the date on which we found Martin Carpentier’s damaged vehicle, we have received, processed, validated and analyzed more than 1,000 reports,” police said.

“We have searched over 700 addresses, outbuildings, cottages and other places to locate or find clues.”

But there’s been no signs of Carpentier, 44, the suspect investigators have identified as key to understanding what happened to the young sisters.

Police have said Carpentier and his daughters Norah and Romy were seen in their hometown of Levis, Que., and about an hour later, they were believed to be involved in a serious car crash on Highway 20 in St-Apollinaire.

But when police arrived, no one was inside the wrecked vehicle and an Amber Alert was triggered the following day for the missing girls.

Norah and Romy Carpentier, aged 11 and 6, were found dead last Saturday, triggering a manhunt for the 44-year-old.

Police said they checked up on tips St-Apollinaire, and the nearby communities of St-Agapit and Laurier-Station.

But the search had mainly focused on a vast, densely forested area with numerous cabins, shacks and chalets in an area that borders the two towns about 35 kilometres southwest of Quebec City.

Police had intensified their search late this week after police alleged on Thursday that Carpentier had stolen items from a trailer inside the search zone, believing Carpentier may be desperate to find materials he needed to survive in the woods.

On Saturday, investigators accompanied property owners to inspect their buildings, marking off homes with police tape.

But after a painstaking, difficult search using foot patrols, canine teams, ATVs and Wildlife Department officers, police completed a tenth day of searching Saturday without any signs of Carpentier.

“We are on the lookout for new information allowing us to redeploy our staff in other sectors,” police said, adding other investigative techniques are also be used, without elaborating further. 

The funeral for the sisters is scheduled for Monday afternoon in their hometown of Levis, south of Quebec City.

Autopsies have been performed on the girls but police have said they won’t reveal the cause of death until Carpentier is found. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 18, 2020.

– By Sidhartha Banerjee in Montreal.

The Canadian Press