The search for a missing non-verbal child from Shamattawa First Nation is growing increasingly desperate, with no confirmed sign of the boy in more than five days.
Johnson Redhead, 6, was last seen Wednesday when he disappeared from the Kisemattawa Kiskinwahamakewikamik School around 9 a.m.
“The only thing concrete that we have is him on surveillance camera from the school exiting a door that kind of leads him in the direction of the nursing station, which is just to the west,” RCMP Sgt. Paul Manaigre said Sunday from Shamattawa, where he is helping in the search.
“We have tips from the community… but nothing definitive to say, ‘100 per cent, that was him, and this is the direction he went.’ All of the leads — anything that comes in — we are searching.”
RCMP and community members launched a large-scale search after Johnson went missing, combing through wooded areas, trails, roads and sheds. The search has expanded to encompass several kilometres of forest and muskeg surrounding the First Nation, located about 360 kilometres east of Thompson, Manaigre said.
Johnson is non-verbal, complicating the search, he said.
“That makes it more difficult because in that type of situation you have a child who… if he heard searchers calling his name, he most likely would not respond. It’s one of those where you have to get eyes on him.”
A team is also scouring vehicles, appliances and “anything he could fit into” on residential properties, in case Johnson is hiding or trapped inside, he added.
Parts of the search have focused on the western end of the community near a gravel pit where the child was previously known to wander. Some community members reported spotting tracks there, but it is not confirmed whether they belong to Johnson, Manaigre said.
Up to 40 experienced searchers — including members of the Canadian Rangers — are now in the community. Dozens of volunteers from Shamattawa and other First Nations communities are assisting. Resources include all-terrain vehicles, police dogs, infrared drones and a helicopter, Manaigre said.
A trio of search teams equipped with GPS were expected to conduct a grid search of the area over the weekend.
Those helping with the effort are staying in the community, with some sleeping inside the school, he said.
Weather conditions were favourable last week, with temperatures hovering mostly around the low-20s. Environment Canada was projecting the overnight low to drop to 4 C Sunday, which was causing alarm, the Mountie said.
Multiple Shamattawa residents were injured in bear attacks in recent months. The remains of a 60-year-old man were found in a wooded area near the community in July. RCMP said evidence at the scene indicated he was attacked by a bear.
Manaigre acknowledged wildlife is a concern, but said many bears were killed by community members in the wake of the attacks. He said he had not spotted any bears since being in Shamattawa, even when surveying the surrounding wilderness via helicopter.
While water is accessible “pretty much anywhere” near the First Nation, searchers are worried about whether the missing child has found anything to eat, Manaigre said.
tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca
Tyler Searle
Reporter
Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press‘s city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic’s creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler.
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