By Ron Fanfair, Toronto Police Service
A 14-year-old Toronto boy, who was abducted on March 4, has been reunited with his family.
Shammah Jolayemi was forced into a vehicle in the Jane St. and Driftwood Ave. area while on his way to school.
Toronto Police Service members found the missing boy in Brampton around 10:20 p.m. on March 5.
At a news conference at police headquarters on March 6, Chief Mark Saunders said police responded to an unknown trouble call around 8:25 a.m. two days ago.
“When 31 Division officers arrived, the information was they heard someone saying something to the effect of ‘Help me, Help me’ and something to deal with a Black Wrangler with oversized tires,” he said.
“Officers immediately started to canvas the area for witnesses and any kind of evidence to assist with the investigation. Later on, it was determined that this vehicle was involved. Another person stated that our victim was pushed into the vehicle.”
At around 5.27 p.m. on March 4, Jolayemi’s father contacted police to say his son was missing.
More aggressive resources were put into play to help us move this as fast as we could because we understood what the circumstances were,” Chief Saunders said.
“About 10 p.m., that night in Caledon, a vehicle fitting that description was located after a resident in the area contacted the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) to say a vehicle was on fire in a park.”
Police believe Jolayemi brother’s involvement in a drug rip-off of over $4 million was the motive for the abduction.
“The boy had absolutely nothing to do with this occurrence other than being a 14-year-old that was the victim of a being abducted,” said Saunders.
Chief Saunderssaid the boy appeared to be disheveled when he was found.
“He was taken to a medical facility for a check-up and he’s now safe with his mom and dad,” he said.
“We are yet to interview him because we want his well-being to be the priority now. As of now, the investigation is still ongoing. We are looking for the persons responsible that caused Shammah to be abducted to turn themselves in… This is a case where I believe with the amount of impact the public has had and with the evidence we are still putting together, there is a fantastic opportunity to find those people that are responsible and bring them before the judicial system.”
Chief Saunders thanked members of the public along with law enforcement agencies, specifically the OPP, Peel and York Regional Police Services and Toronto Police Organized Crime Enforcement Section for the critical roles they played in the investigation.
