“Cruel” vandals have torn down posters for a missing 14-year-old Jewish girl – who disappeared over a week ago in Toronto.
Flyers with details about Esther “Esti’s” disappearance were posted on lamp posts and telephone poles around the city, but they were thoughtlessly ripped down, according to CBC.
The reckless individuals even left behind evidence by not completely taking the posters off, as pictures shared on Reddit show.
Posters for a missing Jewish teenage girl in Toronto have been ripped down by vandals. Toronto Conservative Association / Facebook
Toronto police spokesperson, Nadine Ramadan, told CBC that removing posters isn’t “necessarily a criminal offense,” but it has sparked significant anger.
The teen’s family lawyer, Maureen Leshem, called the act “disturbing and cruel,” adding: “When a family is desperately trying to find their child, this kind of behaviour should concern every person in our city.”
Leshem worries that the vandalism could be influenced by antisemitism and warned it affects the search effort.
“Whether or not that is the intent, the impact is the same: it interferes with efforts to spread awareness and could ultimately hinder the search for Esti,” she said.
Esti has been missing for more than 10 days after she was last seen at a location approximately two miles south of Earl Bales Park in North York, Toronto, just after midnight on May 16.
She was last seen wearing a turquoise sweater with words on the front, grey sweatpants, and no shoes.
Cops revealed that the teen is on the autism spectrum, increasing concerns.
Esther (Esti) has been missing for 10 days. Toronto Police Service
Esti’s worried mom, Shira, told her daughter is “very, very smart,” while her dad, Joseph, mentioned “if you just had a conversation with her, you’d have no clue that she was on the spectrum.”
“You’d think she was just a genius and very articulate. You might think she’s a 25-year-old and not that she’s 14 years old,” he added.
“That’s really how it affects her. It just makes her smarter and she thinks 10 steps ahead of everybody else.”
A poster containing information about the teen’s last sighting. Canadian Women Against Antisemitism
The Toronto police issued a Level 1 search – which is their highest level of operation.
This means authorities can deploy its canine units along with mounted and marine units.
A group from New York is helping Shomrim – a Jewish civilian patrol organization – with searching for the missing teen, City News reported.
“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 gone as far as Scarborough; Mississauga; we’ve literally searched everywhere in the city,” Shomrim supervisor Stuart Sugar said.
A QR code has been created so people can submit video or photos of Esti to authorities.
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