The search for a missing Quebec toddler ended safely Thursday night at a northern Ontario motel as police took one man into custody.
Quebec provincial police notified the public about a missing 18-month-old boy and his 32-year-old mother Wednesday night after she "suddenly left her home in Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury over the weekend."
The woman's former spouse and boy's father, a 41-year-old man, was violently killed in his Saint-Isidore, Que., home sometime between Feb. 13 and 14, police said in a news release. Police have not linked her with the man's death.
Around 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Ontario Provincial Police were alerted that the boy and two adults were traced to the Rainbow Motel in Hagar, about 50 kilometres east of Sudbury.
Motel co-owner Timothy Davis told CTV News the pair and a child arrived on Thursday afternoon and checked into the motel.
"Police arrived around 6 p.m. and moved everyone staying at the motel to rooms in the far end," Davis said.
He confirmed that a man, woman and child were inside a room which was surrounded by police.
"There were 20 police officers on scene, with weapons drawn," said Davis.
At 10:50 p.m., CTV News cameras captured the OPP carrying a child into a police vehicle.
As a result of the investigation, a 25-year-old man from Saint-Bernard, Que., has been charged with careless use and unauthorized possession of a firearm and possession of methamphetamine.
"The child was unharmed and is under the care of the Children's Aid Society. An adult female found at the scene was not arrested," OPP said in a news release Thursday afternoon.
The accused was held in custody pending a bail hearing in Sudbury.
A portion of Highway 17 in the Hagar area was shut down during the operation.
None of the allegations has been proven in court.
Correction
There was confusion at first over whether the mother was also arrested, with the Sûreté du Québec suggesting on Thursday night that it had taken both adults into custody, using the term "prendre en charge" to say it had taken both adults under its purview or in for questioning. Police clarified on Friday to say that only the man was arrested. This article has been updated to reflect the new information.
