TORONTO -- A missing father whose daughters were found dead one week ago in a densely wooded area southwest of Quebec City is "probably dead" unless he has moved to a new location, according to one analyst.
Provincial police announced Saturday night that they had suspended a ground search for Martin Carpentier after 10 days. Former RCMP deputy commissioner Peter German told CTV News Channel that the 44-year-old is likely no longer alive if he is still in the bush.
"I would think it's doubtful after 10 days in the woods, particularly with a thorough search, that he would still be in the woods," German said in an interview on Sunday.
"He's likely expired or he wasn't there in the first place, or he got away early on. It's anyone's guess at this point."
German said given the dangerous terrain, it is unlikely that Carpentier would have been able to survive more than a week in the forested area.
"Ten days in the bush is a long time for anyone to survive, quite frankly, and no doubt [police] have done a thorough search in the area where he is believed to have been, and there's probably no point in continuing if they haven't found him after 10 days," German said.
"If he's still there, he's probably dead. If he's not there, they're going have to look elsewhere," he added.
In a statement, police said they are changing their approach to the investigation but remain determined to find Carpentier.
This does not mean that the search is over. Instead, police are going to be looking at new leads while keeping public safety in mind, according to German.
"They're going to check neighbourhoods, they're going to check connections, they're going to check family, they're going to check everything they can in order to find Carpentier in case he is not in the woods and he somehow got away," German said.
Carpentier and his daughters were last seen in their hometown of Levis, Que. on July 8. Police say the trio is believed to have been involved in a serious car crash on Highway 20 in Saint-Apollinaire but when officials arrived, no one was inside the wrecked vehicle.
An Amber Alert was issued the following day for Norah and Romy, aged 11 and 6. The girls were found dead July 11, triggering a manhunt for Carpentier.
"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."
However, Carpentier -- who investigators have pointed to as a key suspect in his daughter's deaths -- remains at large.
German said it is "not unlike what we saw last summer" with the nation-wide manhunt for B.C. murder suspects Bryer Schmegelsky and Kam McLeod.
"So many tips are coming in, they've got 1,000 tips -- I referred to it last summer as 'tips on steroids.' Most of those tips will lead nowhere but the police do have to chase those down and you never know, one of those thousand tips might actually lead to something," German explained.
Autopsies performed on the girls' bodies have been completed, but authorities are not making the results public until Carpentier has been located.
A funeral is expected to be held for the girls on Monday.
"This seems to have been a tragic family that matter, but [police] are resolute in wanting to find him, and dead or alive, they will want some closure to this case," German said.
"It's an active criminal investigation. That doesn't go away until he is located."
With files from The Canadian Press
