Residents express frustration, gratitude at emotional Quadeville, Ont. town hall after young girl attacked

Police are hosting a town hall in Quadeville after a brutal attack that left a girl with life-threatening injuries.

Several residents in the rural eastern Ontario town of Quadeville expressed their frustration at how long it took for investigators to rule out an animal was involved in the attack of an eight-year-old girl two weeks ago as police defended their actions in the ongoing investigation.

On Saturday evening, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) held a town hall to address questions and concerns from the community, three days after police announced a 17-year-old was charged with attempted murder and sexual assault with a weapon in connection to the case..

Dozens of residents filled the local community centre on a sweltering summer day.

“I want to recognize the impact the last two and half weeks have had on this community,” said OPP Supt. Derek Needham at the start of the town hall.

“The impact is not just felt by a close circle. It is felt by everyone in this community.”

Four OPP officers closely involved in the case stood before a podium in uniform and allowed residents to individually ask questions. Residents were told they could not speak to any details or any evidence linked to the ongoing investigation. As per the Youth Criminal Justice Act, the suspect cannot be identified.

The young girl was reported missing on Monday, June 23 in Quadeville, approximately 160 kilometres west of Ottawa. The OPP Canine Unit located the girl just before 12:30 a.m. June 24 with life-threatening injuries along Quadeville Road.

For two weeks, residents had been asked to keep small children indoors as police suspected an animal attack was responsible for the extent of her injuries. The community had been left with questions and speculation until Wednesday when police announced a 17-year-old boy was arrested and charged.

One resident pressed the officers as to why it took so long to find the girl and to mobilize the Canine Unit and other resources on the day she went missing.

“Why did it take so long to find the little girl – almost six hours,” said the man who identified himself as a relative of the victim.

Needham said investigators acted as quickly as possible to find her when the missing persons alert went out but had to follow a process that takes time to get resources in place.

“It does take time to get some of those specialized services here,” Needham said. “In order to start a search and an effective search, it does take time to bring everybody to do that.”

The man replied: “As a parent, that’s not good enough. If you guys are there for a child, you should be there. It could’ve been my son.”

Another resident asked why it took investigators so long to rule out an animal attack. In a media release Wednesday, police said no animal DNA was identified.

“Because that was one of the original considerations that the criminal investigations branch did have,” Needham said.

He added, that unlike what is seen on the television show CSI, or other police shows, DNA testing takes time.

“The reality is – that’s not reality. It does take time to get information back. DNA testing typically is a whole lot longer than a few weeks,” he said.

One man praised the work of the investigators and the community on the night the young girl was found.

”I was really proud of my community and how they came around that night,” he said.

Police did not provide additional information on whether other suspects were being considered and said a continued presence of officers will remain in the coming weeks.

Some asked police how long the investigation would take or whether the suspect admitted to his crime. Police said they could not answer as the matter is before the courts.

“Could you speak to how we move forward with interacting with both families?” asked one resident, who noted the community knows the families of the suspect and the victim well.

“There is a whole lot of healing that’s going to have to take place and in a small community, communication might be a challenge, but the important thing is to reach out and have that communicated. That healing process has to be as a community,” Needham said.

Bill Dickson, acting manager of media relations for the OPP, said there is no longer a heightened fear for animal attacks but said the community should always be aware and cautious of wildlife regardless of the circumstances.

“I think you should anyway and not just because of this case. It’s part of living in the country and we have to have that degree of vigilance while living in the country,” he said.

Staff Sgt. Sarah Darraugh said the local church will be setting up additional services for members of the community on Sunday. The mayor of the township of Brudenell, Lyndoch and Raglan will also be bringing in counselling and victim services next week, Darraugh said.

“We are always at the other end of the phone, your safety and the safety of your children are my top priority,” Darraugh said.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Josh Pringle and Joshua Marano