Community members are shocked to learn that a 17-year-old, who was arrested on July 8, was allegedly behind the attack, and not an animal.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
The 17-year-old accused of the attack in Quadeville, Ont., of an eight-year-old girl, whose injuries were initially believed to have been caused by an animal, made a brief appearance in a Pembroke court on Thursday.
The accused, whose identity is protected under Ontario’s Youth Criminal Justice Act, has been charged with attempted murder and sexual assault with a weapon on a person under 16 years old.
The parents of the accused were also in court, said his lawyer, Marni Munsterman.
The incident has shaken residents of the tiny tight-knit community of Quadeville, located about two hours west of Ottawa.
Quadeville residents question police over response to attack on eight-year-old girl
The eight-year-old, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, was reported missing just after 9 p.m. on June 23. She was located by a canine unit around 12:30 the following morning, Bill Dickson, the OPP’s media relations co-ordinator for Eastern Ontario previously told The Globe and Mail.
The victim was found with “horrific” life-threatening injuries, Mr. Dickson said. In a news release at the time, police said they suspected it was an animal attack.
The OPP advised residents to keep children inside, or under close supervision.
Mr. Dickson told The Globe that it wasn’t just police officers that formed the theory that the girl had been attacked by an animal. Forensic and wildlife experts also came to the same conclusion, he said.
“They did have the look, not just to our members, but to some experts in the field, that they were consistent with what appeared to be animal wounds, or animal-related wounds,” Mr. Dickson said.
However, samples later taken from the victim’s wounds revealed no traces of animal DNA.
Residents were stunned to learn that a 17-year-old, who was arrested on July 8, was allegedly behind the attack, and not an animal.
The OPP held a town hall in Quadeville on July 12, where community members questioned four officers about how the investigation unfolded and why for two weeks they’d called it an animal attack.
Officers said they alerted the town within hours after receiving the DNA results that confirmed the attack wasn’t from an animal, and told residents that traps laid by the Ministry of Natural Resources had been removed.
Police did not confirm whether other suspects are being considered and declined to answer questions about the accused. The investigation is continuing.
Superintendent Derek Needham said community members should reach out to each other, even if it’s awkward. “There’s lots of healing that will have to take place,” he said at the town hall. “The healing process has to be done as a community.”
Community members have told The Globe that the victim is an active, friendly girl who played with all the local children.
In a video posted on June 26 on a GoFundMe page, a man who identified himself as the victim’s legal guardian thanked the community for the prayer and support he has received.
He said the eight-year-old is in stable condition but that he wasn’t sure if she would require more surgery.
Within 24 hours, the page raised $5,500. By Thursday, about 500 people had donated more than $43,000.
The accused is scheduled to appear in court again on Aug. 21.
With a report from Sophia Coppolino