Girl found in water in Dunnville, Ont. under two-and-a-half-years-old: OPP
Provincial police have provided new information about the age of a young girl whose body was found in the water in Dunnville, Ont. earlier this week.
She is now believed to have been between ten-and-a-half months and two-and-a-half-years-old at the time of her death, OPP said Friday.
Studies are being done to determine the length of time she was in the water. A post-mortem was conducted Thursday and additional testing has been scheduled, police said.
As the investigation continues, police issued a specific request Friday.
Investigators are asking anyone who may know of a family with a little girl who may have left town suddenly or moved away under circumstances now considered suspicious to contact them.
The girl's body was discovered by people fishing in the Grand River on Tuesday and emergency responders arrived around 1:22 p.m.
"It's tragic, and it's disturbing," said Detective Inspector Shawn Glassford with the OPP on Wednesday. "Somebody out there is missing this child. Somebody is wondering what happened to this child and we want to hear from those people."
An OPP boat searches the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont. after the remains of a young girl were found. (May 18, 2022)
"I just can't imagine that someone would do that to a baby... a baby," said Chris Aldridge, who lives in Dunnville.
"It's very, very sad," said another resident, Kathy Gilbert. "I can't believe it. Something like this would happen in this town. It's just a sad day."
Police said they are looking into missing person reports from across Canada and the United States as part of their efforts to identify the girl.
Authorities have also set up a special tip line for anyone who may have information that can help in their investigation.
Residents are asked to call 1-844-677-9403, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
"We're hopeful that members of the public will assist us," said Glassford. "I think this is one of those cases that we're really going to depend on the public to help us identify this child and determine what happened and how this child ended up in the river and the circumstances surrounding that."
A helicopter flies over the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont. (May 18, 2022)
The community of Dunnville is located near the mouth of the Grand River in Haldimand County. There are a number of boat launches along the waterfront and wind turbines lining the shore.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING | Brown campaign accuses Conservative party of acting in favour of Poilievre after disqualification from leadership race
The campaign for Patrick Brown said it was consulting its legal team after the leadership election organizing committee of the federal Conservatives voted to disqualify him from the race late Tuesday.

Woman who was set on fire on Toronto bus has died, police confirm
A woman who was set on fire while on a Toronto bus in a random attack last month has died, police say.
Assembly of First Nations delegates reject resolution calling for chief's suspension
An emergency resolution before the Assembly of First Nations annual meeting to reaffirm the suspension of National Chief RoseAnne Archibald has failed in Vancouver.
'We're all really shaken up': Father recounts reuniting with missing daughter as U.S. man is charged
The father of the Edmonton girl who was missing for nine days said he was getting ready to post another update on Facebook last Saturday when police knocked on his door.
Two young ER doctors quit Montreal jobs, blaming Quebec's broken health-care system and Bill 96
Two young emergency room doctors, raised and trained in Montreal, are leaving their jobs after only two years to move back to Toronto – and they say the Quebec health-care model and Bill 96 are to blame.
Tamara Lich breached conditions by appearing with fellow convoy leader: Crown
The Crown is seeking to revoke bail for Tamara Lich, a leader of the 'Freedom Convoy,' after she appeared alongside a fellow organizer in an alleged breach of her conditions.
Parade shooting suspect charged with 7 counts of murder
A man charged Tuesday with seven counts of murder after firing off more than 70 rounds at an Independence Day parade in suburban Chicago legally bought five weapons, including the high-powered rifle used in the shooting, despite authorities being called to his home twice in 2019 for threats of violence and suicide, police said.
Bank of Canada's rapid rate hikes likely to cause a recession, study finds
The Bank of Canada's strategy of rapidly increasing its key interest rate in an effort to tackle skyrocketing inflation will likely trigger a recession, says a new study released Tuesday from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
Canada is the first country to ratify Finland and Sweden's accession to join NATO
Canada became the first country to ratify Finland and Sweden's accession protocols to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Tuesday.