It’s been just over two years since Mackenzie Trottier went missing.
“You’re supposed to be in a festive mood, but we don’t feel very festive at this time,” said her father Paul Trottier.
His daughter was last seen on Dec. 21, 2020.
“The 21st is one of those days that comes, and we experience that for a couple of weeks before, a couple of weeks after, right through the Christmas season. So at times it doesn’t feel like Christmas.”
After two years of searching, asking questions and police investigations, the family is now trying alternative methods to bring her home.
“Recently my wife coordinated gifts for the homeless shelter downtown, socks and hand warmers and that kind of thing, just to make sure that people that need have that stuff in this really cold weather,” he said.
“There was a television series done by Paramount+ called ‘Never seen again’ and that was done over the summer.”
Trottier says the episode featuring Mackenzie was shot over the summer, but didn’t address the very real issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women.
“It also stems out to all missing people. We make assumptions and those assumptions kind of guide us which direction we’re going to go, and the assumption is usually that these are people at risk,” he said.
“I would encourage people to know that these are people. These are family members. These are people that belong to a community and without them, we’re not whole.”
Last December Saskatoon Police released CCTV footage of a man believed to have information regarding the disappearance, while Calgary police received information that a person matching her description had been spotted multiple times in that city.
Trottier says neither lead turned into anything.
“There is no new information on Mackenzie,” he said.
“We’re encouraging people to come forward. Somebody somewhere knows something, as Brian Gallagher would say, and we just want to make sure that that information comes forward, as small as it might be, might lead to something.”
Trottier says he’s been in close contact with Saskatoon Police staff sergeant Grant Obst throughout the investigation into Mackenzie’s disappearance.
“It’s a tough case. There’s been obviously no contact from Mackenzie from very shortly before she was reported missing,” Obst said.
“There’s been numerous tips that have come in, and a lot of work gone into tracking down those tips, or checking out those tips. Some of them got our hopes up, but unfortunately all of them today have not panned out and have not turned out to be related to Mackenzie.”
Obst says the investigation into missing persons cases are broad, dealing with social media activity, bank account activity< and receiving information from the public. “Mackenzie's case is one that we've spent a lot of time on, and we'll continue to spend a lot of time on until we get the result that we need,” he said. “We are of the opinion that there are some people out there that know more than they're telling us.” https://saskatoon.ctvnews.ca/saskatoon-family-marks-two-year-anniversary-of-daughter-s-disappearance-1.6207382