Investigators are appealing to the public, especially Farsi- and Arabic-speaking communities, for information that could help them find a woman who was abducted from a home in Wasaga Beach, Ont., three months ago.
Ontario Provincial Police said Elnaz Hajtamiri, 37, who immigrated to Canada from Iran less than four years ago, was abducted on the evening of Jan. 12.
Det. Insp. Martin Graham said three men dressed in police gear forced their way into a home where Hajtamiri was staying with relatives and fled with her in what is believed to be a white Lexus RX sport utility vehicle.
"We cannot even imagine the grief that her family members are feeling, who are half a continent and half a globe away from ourselves here in Ontario, and the added torment of not knowing what has happened to their daughter, their sister, their niece, their cousin, or indeed why," Graham at a news conference on Tuesday.
"That is why we are working hard to appeal for any information that will help bring them resolution."
In an emotional plea in Farsi, Hajtamiri's mother, Fariba Hajtamiri, said she doesn't know if her daughter is alive, but is hoping anyone with information will come forward.
"We desperately need your help," she said. "I beg you, as a mother, to guide us and tell us anything you know. Please help us find Elnaz."
The OPP have established a dedicated tip line for the case and are asking the public for any information that could help locate Hajtamiri.
Graham said investigators believe individuals involved in an earlier "vicious assault" of Hajtamiri on Dec. 20, 2021, are either involved in her abduction or could identify those who are responsible.
On that day in December, Graham said, Hajtamiri was attacked and struck with a frying pan in an underground parking lot in Richmond Hill, Ont., and then taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Graham said two male suspects fled the scene in a vehicle that was stolen the night before in the north end of Toronto.
Police said they have no information regarding a possible motive for the crimes, and no ransom demand has been received at this time.
Graham noted that Hajtamiri's former partner was charged with criminal harassment on Jan. 22 in Wasaga Beach and that the matter is "before the courts." He said that individual was released following a bail hearing and was scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday.
Hajtamiri, who also goes by the last name Tamiri, is described as five feet three inches tall, with a slim build and had shoulder-length black hair that was cut to a shorter length before she was abducted, according to police.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 12, 2022.
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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.
Noushin Ziafati, The Canadian Press
