Bathurst Police Update Missing Teen Investigation

Bathurst police say the search for a 14-year-old girl missing for more than two weeks is being treated as a criminal investigation.

Madison Roy-Boudreau was last seen getting into a Ford Ranger pickup truck on May 11.

The truck has since been found but there has been no sign of the teen, whose disappearance has been treated as suspicious by police.

“We want to stay optimistic, but as a community and especially the family, we have to be prepared for the worst scenario,” Bathurst police Chief Stéphane Roy said during a news conference Thursday.

Roy spent much of the news conference detailing a timeline of their investigation over the past two weeks.

Madison was reported missing to police on the evening of May 11. She had last been seen at 7:30 a.m. heading to school.

By the next day, officers confirmed that Madison had last been seen getting into a pickup truck and “quickly” located it, he said.

The next day, Roy said officers seized the truck and took the driver into custody.

Roy also confirmed the arrest of 42-year-old Steven Laurette of nearby South Tetagouche but would not say if he was the driver.

“I can tell you that he’s charged for failing to comply with the conditions of a court undertaking but I cannot comment on whether or not it’s in connection to Madison,” he said, citing a publication ban on the court matters.

The chief said officers received several tips that the truck was last seen at a quarry on St. Anne Street.

Police and ground search and rescue volunteers, among others, spent several days scouring the property but did not locate Madison.

“Volunteers worked tirelessly for 12 to 16-hour days,” said Roy.

Roy also addressed questions about why an Amber Alert was not issued after Madison was reported missing. He said not all of the criteria to issue an alert had been met but declined to elaborate further.

The chief said he understands the public has questions about Madison’s disappearance but notes there is only so much information police can release at this time at risk of compromising their investigation.

“There is a clear distinction between what is a missing persons report and what is a criminal investigation into a missing persons report,” he said.

“We are conducting a criminal investigation into a missing persons report and as such we are not at liberty to disclose pertinent information to what could eventually be for a criminal proceeding.”

Roy asked anyone with a video recording device in their vehicle who was driving around Bathurst between 7 a.m. and 11 a.m. on May 11 to contact the police force.

Madison is described as 5’4″ tall, weighing 119 pounds, with brown eyes and medium-length brown hair.

She was last seen wearing a grey sweater, a pair of camouflage-coloured pants, and a pair of silver-coloured shoes.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call the Bathurst Police Force at 506-548-0420 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.