The disappearance of a 10-year-old boy that has riveted Montrealers and brought thousands to tears as they viewed his family’s travail took another turn on Tuesday when police divers said they were ending their search in the icy waters of a river at the north end of the city.
Ariel Jeffrey Kouakou went missing without a trace on March 12 after he left his home to visit a friend.
When the story became public, many in the city rallied to the Kouakou family’s cause after it offered $10-thousand to anyone with information to their son’s whereabouts.
Bruno Rodi, owner of a furniture store chain, put up $50-thousand as an incentive “to find Ariel in good shape” and former light-heavyweight champion boxer Adonis Stevenson donated $15,000.
The search of the Riviere des Prairies may have ceased, but Ariel’s father, Kouadio Frederic Kouakou, vowed to continue the search, saying Tuesday he still believes his son is alive and was likely abducted.
“I already see how difficult it is for my wife, how difficult it is for my children, how difficult it is for my little girl. If I give up, everything around me will crumble,” Kouakou said.
“I am doing everything to tap into the resources within me to hold on. It’s difficult, but I don’t have a choice. I truly do not have a choice.”
The day after Ariel left home, a woman came forward to say she had seen Ariel in a park not far from his north-end home.
Kouakou says he and his wife, Alouena Noella Bibie, need to speak with the woman.
“We haven’t met that woman yet and we would really like to so she can tell us what he was wearing, how he was,” Kouakou said Tuesday.
“She is the last person to have seen our son and we have a right to know what happened with her.”
Montreal police say they will continue to patrol and try to find more information and are asking the public for help.
Since Ariel’s disappearance, police have received over 600 tips.
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