Ontario Police Release 3D Image, Offer $50,000 Reward to Identify Child Found in River 2 Years Ago

3D facial approximation of a small child whose remains were discovered in the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont., on May 17, 2022. Ontario Provincial Police

Ontario Police have released a 3D facial approximation of a child whose remains were found in the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont., two years ago. Additionally, a $50,000 reward has been offered to encourage public assistance in identifying the child.

The female child was between ten-and-a-half months and 3 years old at the time of her death, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) said in a May 13 press release. Her heritage may be half Chinese or from neighbouring countries along the southern Chinese border, and half North African, based on investigative genetic genealogy analysis. The image depicts the child with silvery-blond hair and dark brown eyes.

The child’s remains were found on May 17, 2022, by two individuals fishing on the Grand River. As the second anniversary of the discovery approaches, an OPP investigator expressed optimism that the new forensic genetic image will aid in identifying the child.

“We are hopeful that the 3D facial approximation will spark someone’s memory and help us identify this little girl. We want to give this child her name back,” OPP Detective Inspector Shawn Glassford said. “It’s difficult to understand how someone could throw away a child like that.”

Additionally, the OPP released a new video titled “The Grand River Baby: Unsolved,” providing an in-depth look into the case. The OPP said they have combed through missing person files and that no reports have been filed regarding this missing child.

Darryl Graham, an OPP detective involved in the case in 2022, described the heavy feeling he experienced when he received the call.

“I was hoping that this report had been exaggerated and the information that had been received or the observations made by the complainant had been inaccurate,” he said in the video. “Being a parent myself, the last thing that I wanted to be involved in or to know that happened was that a child had died.”

Det. Graham said he received the report from OPP in Haldimand County that a child’s body was located along the southern bank of the Grand River. Haldimand County is a rural municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in southern Ontario.

Police urge anyone with information about the child’s identity or any pertinent details, including knowledge of a family who may have abruptly left town or relocated under suspicious circumstances, to call the dedicated tip line at 1-844-677-9403. Those preferring anonymity can reach out to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or visit its website.