Toronto Police Find 14-Year-Old Esti Safe in Etobicoke After 2-Week Search

Q: Where was the autistic teen for two weeks, and what led to her disappearance?

Esther was found safe in a home in Etobicoke, Toronto, after being missing for nearly two weeks. According to the additional reporting, her disappearance appears to have been triggered by acute stress and sensory overload on the night she left home. Her mother said Esther, who is autistic, had already been under strain and was not getting the support she needed. During a Shabbat dinner on May 15, small things were increasingly upsetting her, and by about 11 p.m. she said she felt she had to leave the house. She was last seen shortly after midnight on May 16 near Bathurst Street and Hotspur Road in North York, close to Earl Bales Park and Sheppard Avenue West. Police later pursued information that she had been seen at a subway station, a lead that appears to have helped locate her. Authorities have confirmed only that she was found safe; they have not publicly detailed where she stayed throughout the entire two-week period or the full circumstances of how she came to be in the Etobicoke home. So while the broad outline is now clearer, some specifics about her movements during the disappearance remain undisclosed. What is known is that the case prompted a rare Priority 1 response from Toronto police, with drones, canine teams, mounted units, and large volunteer efforts helping in the search.

Q: Will the tearing down of missing posters now be investigated as an antisemitic hate crime?

No public indication suggests Toronto police are now investigating the torn-down missing posters as an antisemitic hate crime. The Toronto Police Service has said its priority was finding Esther and, after she was located, determining whether there was any criminality connected to her disappearance. On the poster issue, police spokesperson Viktor Sarudi said removing posters is “not necessarily a criminal offence.” Superintendent Don Belanger called the behavior “unethical” and “ridiculous,” but did not announce a hate-crime probe. That does not mean such an investigation is impossible. In Canada, non-violent hate crimes are often classified under mischief or vandalism if police determine there is evidence the act was motivated by bias against a protected group, including religion. If investigators were to identify suspects or evidence showing the posters were targeted because Esther is Jewish, the matter could potentially be treated as hate-motivated. For now, though, the public record stops short of that. Esther’s family and supporters have said they fear the repeated removal of the posters was antisemitic, and public figures including Senator Leo Housakos, Deborah Lipstadt and the Israeli Embassy in Canada condemned it in those terms. But condemnation from family or officials is not the same as a police designation. So the best-supported answer is that, as of now, police have not publicly said the poster removals will be investigated as an antisemitic hate crime.

3 articles · Updated · Anash.org - Good News · May 28

Toronto police found 14-year-old Esti at about 1 p.m. in an Etobicoke residence, ending a nearly two-week missing-person search; officers said she appeared in good physical condition.
A phone call Esti made from a train station earlier Thursday led investigators to her location, and she was taken to hospital to assess any emotional impact.
Police said the case has now shifted to examining whether any criminality was involved in her prolonged disappearance, while declining further detail to protect the family’s privacy.
The search began after Esti vanished shortly after midnight on May 16 in North York and escalated to a Level 1 operation, with canine, mounted and marine units deployed.
Hundreds of volunteers joined Toronto police in a cross-border effort that included a $25,000 reward and search teams from New York, drawing thanks from both police and Esti’s father.