Volunteers have sprung into action to help search and raise money towards a reward for information for Esther, a North York teen who has been missing for nearly 10 days.
Esther, who also goes by Esti or Sylvia, a name officials say she has asked friends and others to call her in the past, was seen around 11:15 p.m. in the Earl Bales Park area in North York on May 15.
Police say she was also seen just after midnight on May 16 near Bathurst Street and Hotspur Road, almost three kilometres away from the park.
Toronto residents have raised a $25,000 reward for information that would help locate the 14-year-old girl.
Shomrim Toronto, a local group that assists in community watches and safety patrols is also organizing volunteer searches across the city.
“We started off in Earl Bales Park where she was originally last seen and we’ve been expanding that bubble ever since. So we’ve covered this entire community, we’ve been downtown, we’ve been as far as Scarborough, Mississauga, we’ve been literally everywhere in the city,” said Stuart Sugar, a supervisor with the Shomrim Toronto safety patrol.
Esther is described as five foot two inches with a medium build and brown hair. She was last seen wearing a turquoise sweater with words on the front, grey sweatpants, and no shoes.
Investigators say Esther has been diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum, heightening concerns for her safety as the search enters its tenth day.
“This is a missing child, we need to bring her home and we need every Canadian citizen out there to help us,” said Maureen Leshem, a volunteer helping with the search.
A group from New York has also travelled to Toronto to assist Shomrim in their search efforts, meaning hundreds of volunteers are combing the city looking for Esther.
Shomrim is working closely with Toronto police and Esther’s family during this time.
“They are very scared for their daughter and they need all eyes and all ears of every single person because you never know who can be that next person that leads us to Esti,” said Leshem.
Police and volunteers are urging residents to check their home surveillance cameras, dashcams or anything us that could help investigators piece together Esther’s movements since she was last seen.
They have created a dedicated phone line for the public to call in any tips they might have about Esther.
Anyone with information is asked to call 647-355-4148 or call Crime Stoppers at 416-222-TIPS (8477) if they wish to remain anonymous.
To submit video or photos, a QR code has been created and when scanned, it will open the Toronto Police Service evidence submission portal
Scan this QR code to upload any photos and videos related to this investigation: