Two individuals residing near the residence of Lilly and Jack Sullivan reported to the police that they heard a vehicle moving around in the late hours of the night just before the Nova Scotia children were declared missing, according to court documents. However, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stated on Monday that after a comprehensive examination of surveillance footage in the Gairloch Road area of Pictou County, no evidence of any vehicle activity was found during that period.
The RCMP communications advisor, Allison Gerrard, mentioned in an email to CBC that no driver was identified, and the presence of a vehicle was not confirmed as crucial to the investigation, despite witnesses hearing a vehicle but not visually confirming its presence. These new details from witnesses were disclosed in redacted records released earlier in August and further details were revealed after CBC News pushed to have some redactions lifted.
The court applications within the documents sought permission for investigators to search for phone records, banking records, and relevant video materials related to the case, including unproven statements made by the police. Lilly, aged 6, and Jack, aged 4, were reported missing on May 2 when their mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray, contacted the police after they were believed to have wandered away from their home in Lansdowne Station, situated about 140 kilometers northeast of Halifax.
The siblings resided on the property with their mother, stepfather Daniel Martell, the couple’s one-year-old daughter, and Martell’s mother. Witnesses in the area, such as Brad Wong and Justin Smith, reported hearing vehicle movements on the night of the children’s disappearance. Martell stated in an interview that no one from the family left the property that night, and the only vehicle that left the yard was his taking Murray-Brooks’ SUV to search for the missing children.
Martell also mentioned that the investigators had not inquired about the vehicle activities reported by witnesses. The RCMP confirmed some additional investigation details via email but declined an interview request. The investigation included interactions with Malehya Brooks-Murray’s relative, Darin Geddes, who appeared on a true crime show under a pseudonym and shared theories about the case.
Despite extensive search efforts and investigations, the case of the missing children remains unresolved. The RCMP emphasized that the case is still under investigation as a missing persons case and is not yet classified as a criminal matter. The mysterious circumstances surrounding the disappearance have attracted global attention but have not yielded concrete answers to date.