Latest news with #PictouCounty
National Post
a day ago
- National Post
Step-grandmother of missing N.S. kids pleads with public to stop accusing family of harming Lilly and Jack
The step-grandmother of two young children who vanished from a rural Nova Scotia home almost three months ago is pleading with the public to stop spreading rumours about the children's disappearance. Article content In an interview with CBC News, Janie Mackenzie described the chaotic days that unfolded after six-year-old Lily Sullivan and four-year-old Jack Sullivan went missing from their home in Lansdowne Station, Pictou County, on May 2. Article content Article content The siblings were last seen that morning at the home they shared with their mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray, and their stepfather, Daniel Martell, Mackenzie's son. The mobile home sits along a gravel road surrounded by dense woods, with an RV parked nearby, where Mackenzie was staying at the time. The house also has a back patio, with a sliding glass door, which is most likely how the children got out that morning. Article content Near the RV there is a fenced-in play set with swings and a slide, where the children would play. It is also where Mackenzie said she heard the kids playing the morning they disappeared. About 20 minutes later, she heard her son yelling for them. Article content 'I blame myself for not getting up that morning to see the kids because … this would have never happened,' Mackenzie told CBC. Article content In the days since, search teams combed through the thick woods and the family's property, uncovering only minimal clues, including what appeared to be two small footprints and a piece of a pink blanket, which is confirmed to be Lilly's. Since then, the investigation has expanded, drawing in multiple RCMP divisions, including major crimes, but, so far, not much is known. Article content Article content In an update last week, police said the Northeast Nova RCMP Major Crime Unit is leading the investigation and that officials are examining thousands of videos. Article content Article content In the weeks following their disappearance, Mackenzie and her family have cooperated with the investigation, she told CBC/ Apart from one instance in the first days of search, where Mackenzie says she stopped an officer from checking her trailer to secure her dog, both the mobile home and trailer have been thoroughly searched, multiple times, by RCMP and ground crews. The septic tank and well were also searched, she said, along with drones flown underneath the mobile home. Her son also passed a polygraph test, as he has previously told the media. Article content However, Mackenzie and her son have been accused on social media of harming the children and burying them on the property, she said. Article content 'A heart don't lie, and my heart is telling me that my kid did not have nothing to do with this, and I had nothing to do with this,' Mackenzie told CBC. Article content Before the disappearance thrust her family into the public eye, Mackenzie lived a quiet, private life. Now, her life is always in the spotlight, she said. Cars slow down as they pass by, drones frequently hover overhead, and media outlets show up at her door. Article content If she goes out, she said she keeps her head down because she doesn't want to be recognized. 'It's not because I'm hiding from anybody,' she said. 'I'm just a quiet person that just wants to be left alone.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Step-grandmother of missing N.S. kids recalls hearing their voices, followed by 'nothing'
Janie Mackenzie was asleep in her trailer when she awoke to the sound of her dog barking, a telltale sign her two young step-grandchildren were out playing on a swingset in the backyard. She said she heard Lilly and Jack Sullivan's voices. Her bedroom is only a few steps away. "After that, I heard nothing," said Mackenzie of the morning of May 2, when the two children disappeared from the property in Lansdowne Station, a sparsely populated community in Nova Scotia's Pictou County. The next thing she did hear was her son, Daniel Martell, yelling the children's names. A short time later, she emerged from the trailer to find the children's mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray, standing in the driveway with her one-year-old daughter on her hip. Extensive searches turn up little evidence Brooks-Murray told her the children were missing, recalled Mackenzie, and had been gone for about 20 minutes. "I closed the door, got my boots on, came out here, ran up in the woods," Mackenzie said in an interview outside of her trailer. It is the first time CBC News has been given access to the property from which the children went missing. Mackenzie said she was speaking to her brother on the phone for about two minutes at 8:48 a.m. local time and then dozed off before being awoken by the dog's barking, so the children went missing sometime after that. What followed was days of extensive searches of the property and surrounding woods that turned up little evidence, aside from two boot prints and a piece of a blanket. Over the past 11 weeks, nearly a dozen RCMP units — including major crimes — have been working on the case, but have released few details about what may have happened to Lilly, 6, and Jack, 4. Mackenzie has decided to share her side of the story in the hopes of bringing more clarity to what transpired that morning and to help dispel the flurry of rumours that have been circulating online. "I blame myself for not getting up that morning to see the kids because ... this would have never happened," she said through tears. Mackenzie described the scene on her property — where she has lived for 26 years — as chaotic on that first day of the disappearance as RCMP officers, search and rescue officials and reporters descended upon the rural community. Two years before, Martell and Brooks-Murray came to live there with Jack and Lilly, whose biological father had chosen a few years prior not to be a part of their lives. Soon after, Martell and Brooks-Murray welcomed their daughter. Mackenzie said she gave the young family the mobile home and she started living in a small RV. She built the wooden swingset in the backyard, which she outfitted with a blue slide and sandbox. WATCH | Mackenzie takes CBC News through her property: "They were part of my life for two years. When they came to live here, they became part of this family," said the 59-year-old Mackenzie. Mackenzie said she and her family have been nothing but co-operative with police since the children disappeared, all while it has attracted intense international interest. Mackenzie said there was one instance on the very first day of the search when an officer attempted to enter her trailer and she stopped the officer, but only because she wanted to remove her dog first. Since then, the property has been scoured. Both RCMP and search and rescue officials have searched the property's mobile home and trailer multiple times. The well and septic tank have been searched. A drone was even flown under the mobile home. Martell was also given a polygraph test, which he says he passed. And yet, accusations that she or her son are somehow involved in the disappearance continue to be hurled their way online, she said. "My life has been turned upside down, inside and out," she said. "I had nothing to do with any of this.… I want them home safe and sound just as much as everybody else does. I want to know what happened. "I want the rumours to stop. I just want everything to stop. For me, for the sake of the other children, my grandchildren. They don't deserve this. They're innocent of everything. Jack and Lilly are innocent of everything. They didn't deserve this." In the beginning, her family was receiving regular updates about the investigation. But that has all but stopped in recent weeks, leaving her and Martell with many unanswered questions. She feels the case now lacks the urgency it deserves. She's also critical of the RCMP's initial response to the case, questioning how far two children could have reasonably travelled through thick woods in the span of roughly 20 minutes. Having lived on the property for decades, she's acutely aware of just how dense the forest is, which was made worse by downed trees during post-tropical storm Fiona in 2022. "We've went for walks in the woods. I had to practically … carry Jack through the woods because there was no way that he was walking through all that tree falls and bushes," she said, later taking CBC News through a path the children often used, littered with criss-crossing trees. RCMP investigation questioned "I don't think they're in the woods. We searched this place.... They had helicopters out. They had drones out. They had searchers. They went over this place with a fine-tooth comb." A member of Brooks-Murray's extended family is also critical of how the RCMP investigation has played out. Darin Geddes, a cousin of Brooks-Murray's grandmother, said he had been speaking with many members of both families in the weeks following the disappearance and believed he had information that could be pertinent to the investigation, but was brushed off by the Mounties. "It's not hurt. It's rage. And I'm trying to control it," Geddes said in a recent interview, adding he did eventually track down an officer to take his statement. On Wednesday, RCMP said units from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Ontario are working on the case. Spokesperson Cpl. Carlie McCann said a pink blanket that was seized on Lansdowne Road on the first day of the search is being forensically examined. McCann said the family has confirmed the blanket belongs to Lilly. McCann said police are following up on more than 600 tips from the public, reviewing 5,000 video files and have interviewed more than 60 people. Asked if police are investigating the possibility of the children still being alive, McCann said: "We've not closed any doors on the investigation at this point." She also said an RCMP family liaison is in regular contact with a designated relative of Lilly and Jack, providing ongoing updates and support. She would not say who the designated relative is. Mackenzie said she lived a quiet life before the disappearance launched her and her family into the spotlight, as keyboard warriors and podcasters dissect every aspect of the case. She said cars will drive by and slow down, peering down the gravel driveway flanked by the mobile home and trailer. It's also not uncommon for drones to be flown over her house, for members of the media to knock at her door, and to be recognized everywhere she goes. "I mostly stay around back here and if I do go out front for anything, I usually have my head down because I don't want people to see who I am," she said, seated in front of a green fence that separates her trailer from the rest of the property. "It's not because I'm hiding from anybody…. I'm just a quiet person that just wants to be left alone." The day after the children went missing, Martell and Brooks-Murray attended an RCMP briefing. After that, Brooks-Murray did not return to the home in Lansdowne Station and has not been back since. WATCH | Paternal grandmother speaks to CBC News: Mackenzie said she also hasn't seen her two other grandchildren, Martell's kids from a previous relationship, since the disappearance. She remarked that she went from seeing her five grandchildren regularly to not being able to see any of them, and yearns to be called "Granny" once again. Brooks-Murray did one interview with CTV News the day after the disappearance, but has not spoken to media since. Her mother has told CBC News they were told by police not to speak to media. Through it all, Mackenzie does not believe the children are dead. "You know if something bad happens, you get like your heart drops? Mine hasn't dropped," she said. "Deep down in my heart, I do believe Jack and Lilly are alive." MORE TOP STORIES
CBC
5 days ago
- CBC
Step-grandmother of missing N.S. kids recalls hearing their voices, followed by 'nothing'
Janie Mackenzie was asleep in her trailer when she awoke to the sound of her dog barking, a telltale sign her two young step-grandchildren were out playing on a swingset in the backyard. She said she heard Lilly and Jack Sullivan's voices. Her bedroom is only a few steps away. "After that, I heard nothing," said Mackenzie of the morning of May 2, when the two children disappeared from the property in Lansdowne Station, a sparsely populated community in Nova Scotia's Pictou County. The next thing she did hear was her son, Daniel Martell, yelling the children's names. A short time later, she emerged from the trailer to find the children's mother, Malehya Brooks-Murray, standing in the driveway with her one-year-old daughter on her hip. Extensive searches turn up little evidence Brooks-Murray told her the children were missing, recalled Mackenzie, and had been gone for about 20 minutes. "I closed the door, got my boots on, came out here, ran up in the woods," Mackenzie said in an interview outside of her trailer. It is the first time CBC News has been given access to the property from which the children went missing. Mackenzie said she was speaking to her brother on the phone for about two minutes at 8:48 a.m. local time and then dozed off before being awoken by the dog's barking, so the children went missing sometime after that. What followed was days of extensive searches of the property and surrounding woods that turned up little evidence, aside from two boot prints and a piece of a blanket. Over the past 11 weeks, nearly a dozen RCMP units — including major crimes — have been working on the case, but have released few details about what may have happened to Lilly, 6, and Jack, 4. Mackenzie has decided to share her side of the story in the hopes of bringing more clarity to what transpired that morning and to help dispel the flurry of rumours that have been circulating online. "I blame myself for not getting up that morning to see the kids because ... this would have never happened," she said through tears. Mackenzie described the scene on her property — where she has lived for 26 years — as chaotic on that first day of the disappearance as RCMP officers, search and rescue officials and reporters descended upon the rural community. Two years before, Martell and Brooks-Murray came to live there with Jack and Lilly, whose biological father had chosen a few years prior not to be a part of their lives. Soon after, Martell and Brooks-Murray welcomed their daughter. Mackenzie said she gave the young family the mobile home and she started living in a small RV. She built the wooden swingset in the backyard, which she outfitted with a blue slide and sandbox. "They were part of my life for two years. When they came to live here, they became part of this family," said the 59-year-old Mackenzie. Mackenzie said she and her family have been nothing but co-operative with police since the children disappeared, all while it has attracted intense international interest. Mackenzie said there was one instance on the very first day of the search when an officer attempted to enter her trailer and she stopped the officer, but only because she wanted to remove her dog first. Since then, the property has been scoured. Both RCMP and search and rescue officials have searched the property's mobile home and trailer multiple times. The well and septic tank have been searched. A drone was even flown under the mobile home. Martell was also given a polygraph test, which he says he passed. And yet, accusations that she or her son are somehow involved in the disappearance continue to be hurled their way online, she said. "My life has been turned upside down, inside and out," she said. "I had nothing to do with any of this.… I want them home safe and sound just as much as everybody else does. I want to know what happened. "I want the rumours to stop. I just want everything to stop. For me, for the sake of the other children, my grandchildren. They don't deserve this. They're innocent of everything. Jack and Lilly are innocent of everything. They didn't deserve this." In the beginning, her family was receiving regular updates about the investigation. But that has all but stopped in recent weeks, leaving her and Martell with many unanswered questions. She feels the case now lacks the urgency it deserves. She's also critical of the RCMP's initial response to the case, questioning how far two children could have reasonably travelled through thick woods in the span of roughly 20 minutes. Having lived on the property for decades, she's acutely aware of just how dense the forest is, which was made worse by downed trees during post-tropical storm Fiona in 2022. "We've went for walks in the woods. I had to practically … carry Jack through the woods because there was no way that he was walking through all that tree falls and bushes," she said, later taking CBC News through a path the children often used, littered with criss-crossing trees. RCMP investigation questioned "I don't think they're in the woods. We searched this place.... They had helicopters out. They had drones out. They had searchers. They went over this place with a fine-tooth comb." A member of Brooks-Murray's extended family is also critical of how the RCMP investigation has played out. Darin Geddes, a cousin of Brooks-Murray's grandmother, said he had been speaking with many members of both families in the weeks following the disappearance and believed he had information that could be pertinent to the investigation, but was brushed off by the Mounties. "It's not hurt. It's rage. And I'm trying to control it," Geddes said in a recent interview, adding he did eventually track down an officer to take his statement. On Wednesday, RCMP said units from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Ontario are working on the case. Spokesperson Cpl. Carlie McCann said a pink blanket that was seized on Lansdowne Road on the first day of the search is being forensically examined. McCann said the family has confirmed the blanket belongs to Lilly. McCann said police are following up on more than 600 tips from the public, reviewing 5,000 video files and have interviewed more than 60 people. Asked if police are investigating the possibility of the children still being alive, McCann said: "We've not closed any doors on the investigation at this point." She also said an RCMP family liaison is in regular contact with a designated relative of Lilly and Jack, providing ongoing updates and support. She would not say who the designated relative is. Mackenzie said she lived a quiet life before the disappearance launched her and her family into the spotlight, as keyboard warriors and podcasters dissect every aspect of the case. She said cars will drive by and slow down, peering down the gravel driveway flanked by the mobile home and trailer. It's also not uncommon for drones to be flown over her house, for members of the media to knock at her door, and to be recognized everywhere she goes. "I mostly stay around back here and if I do go out front for anything, I usually have my head down because I don't want people to see who I am," she said, seated in front of a green fence that separates her trailer from the rest of the property. "It's not because I'm hiding from anybody…. I'm just a quiet person that just wants to be left alone." The day after the children went missing, Martell and Brooks-Murray attended an RCMP briefing. After that, Brooks-Murray did not return to the home in Lansdowne Station and has not been back since. WATCH | Paternal grandmother speaks to CBC News: 'My heart tells me these babies are gone,' grandmother of missing N.S. kids says 30 days ago Mackenzie said she also hasn't seen her two other grandchildren, Martell's kids from a previous relationship, since the disappearance. She remarked that she went from seeing her five grandchildren regularly to not being able to see any of them, and yearns to be called "Granny" once again. Brooks-Murray did one interview with CTV News the day after the disappearance, but has not spoken to media since. Her mother has told CBC News they were told by police not to speak to media. Through it all, Mackenzie does not believe the children are dead. "You know if something bad happens, you get like your heart drops? Mine hasn't dropped," she said. "Deep down in my heart, I do believe Jack and Lilly are alive."
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
RCMP give update on missing Nova Scotia siblings, including discovery of pink blanket
More than two months after two young siblings went missing in Nova Scotia, the RCMP say they have received thousands of videos and found a pink blanket belonging to one of the children, but the case remains unsolved. The investigative team in the Northeast Nova RCMP Major Crime Unit is leading the investigation into the disappearance of Lilly Sullivan and Jack Sullivan who went missing from their rural home in Lansdowne Station, Pictou County, N.S. 'Our collective efforts will continue every day until we determine with certainty the circumstances surrounding Lilly and Jack's disappearance,' said Sgt. Rob McCamon, Officer in Charge (acting), Major Crime and Behavioural Sciences, in a statement released July 16. Lilly, six, and Jack, four, were first reported missing on the morning of May 2, 2025, by their mom and stepfather, who believe the kids disappeared while they were still asleep. The stepfather looked for them in neighbouring roads as the mom called police that morning. Since then, more than 800 tasks have been associated with this investigation, the RCMP said in a news release. The latest update on the case doesn't bring any new information about where Lilly and Jack could be or what happened to them, but gives the public an overview of what the next stage of the investigation will look like. The Nova Scotia RCMP said they are reviewing approximately 5,000 video files of Lansdowne Station and its surrounding areas and assessing more than 600 tips from the public. Police have formally interviewed over 60 people, including some with a polygraph test, and are requesting judicial authorizations to seize and examine materials and devices that can help in the investigation. Police also said they are performing forensic examinations on 'materials' found in the search areas, including a pink blanket found near the home on Lansdowne Road. It was confirmed by the family to belong to the children. 'A tremendous amount of careful, deliberate investigative work is underway by people here at home and in other parts of Canada,' said McCamon. When asked in a press conference if the case lacked urgency, a concern expressed by people close to the investigation, spokesperson Cpl. Carlie McCann told reporters that 'an RCMP family liaison is in regular contact with a designated relative of Lilly and Jack.' The Northeast Nova RCMP Major Crime Unit is assisted in the investigation by RCMP units in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Ontario as well as the National Centre of Missing Persons, the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, and provincial and municipal police agencies from Nova Scotia and other parts of Canada. The RCMP is encouraging anyone with specific information on Lilly and Jack's disappearance to call the Northeast Nova RCMP Major Crime Unit at 902-896-5060. To remain anonymous, contact Nova Scotia Crime Stoppers, toll-free, at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), submit a secure web tip at or use the P3 Tips app. Missing N.S. kids: Stepfather says he passed polygraph test, children's grandmother believes they're 'gone' Autistic teen who came to Canada arrested in Japan after meth found in suitcase, family says Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our newsletters here.
CTV News
15-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Northern Pulp to sell off assets five years after N.S. mill closed
More than five years after it closed its Nova Scotia mill, Northern Pulp is starting the process of selling off its company assets, putting an end to discussions of it potentially opening a new kraft pulp mill in the province. Northern Pulp, which fell under creditor protection following the closure of its Pictou County mill in June 2020, said it will start a court-supervised sales process under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). The sale was outlined in the company's settlement agreement with Nova Scotia in May 2024. 'This decision follows the completion of a comprehensive feasibility study, which concluded that the company could not achieve the 14% Internal Rate of Return (IRR) required in the settlement agreement to develop a modern bioproducts hub in Liverpool, Nova Scotia,' a news release from the company says. Northern Pulp launched the feasibility study into a new mill as part of the settlement agreement. The company previously said designing and building the bioproducts hub could cost more than $2.5 billion. 'Northern Pulp is thankful for the support and collaboration of the Province of Nova Scotia and local stakeholders throughout the feasibility study,' the release reads. 'The company also extends its gratitude to Nova Scotia's forestry sector for its support during its ownership of the Pictou mill and the feasibility study. The forestry sector's contributions are vital to the province's rural economy, providing jobs, sustaining communities, and fostering sustainable practices.' In a separate news release, Tory Rushton, minister of Natural Resources, said the provincial government will continue to pursue a new sustainable pulp mill in the province. 'From the outset, our government was at the table, working closely with the company to explore every viable option,' Rushton said. 'We provided meaningful support and discussed programs like our Capital Investment Tax Credit that could have offered significant financial assistance.'We did everything we could to help make it a reality. And while this is not the outcome we had hoped for, our government remains a steadfast partner with the industry in exploring how we might work together – and with the federal government – in attracting a new partner that sees the potential in doing business here.' Northern Pulp says proceeds from the asset sale will repay debt incurred through the CCAA process, fund pension plans and help with site maintenance and closure costs. Any remaining money will go to the province. Northern Pulp said the court-appointed monitor is seeking a stay period until Aug. 29 to 'establish a baseline offer.' The British Columbia Supreme Court will hear the request on Thursday. The provincial government ordered the shutdown of Northern Pulp's mill in 2020 when the company failed to meet the environmental requirements for a new effluent treatment plant. -With files from The Canadian Press For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
