By Canadian Press

Inquest begins into 2020 kidnapping and killing of two Quebec sisters by their father

Feb 13, 2023 | 1:02 AM

MONTREAL — A public inquest into the events surrounding the 2020 killing of two young Quebec girls by their father begins today. 

Quebec’s public security minister ordered the inquest last year after an episode of the Radio-Canada investigative program “Enquete” alleged provincial police made errors in the search for the missing girls and presented new evidence that had not been part of a coroner’s investigation into their deaths. 

Police concluded that Martin Carpentier killed 11-year-old Norah and six-year-old Romy in the woods near St-Apollinaire, Que., southwest of Quebec City before taking his own life, but questions have swirled around the investigation and whether the tragedy could have been averted.

An October 2021 coroner’s report found flaws in police’s handling of the investigation and recommended changes to the process for triggering Amber Alerts, as well as the creation of a dedicated police unit to investigate children’s disappearances across the province.

Deputy chief coroner Luc Malouin will preside over the inquest, which will take place at the Quebec City Courthouse. 

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The girls and their father vanished after their car was involved in a serious crash on Highway 20 in St-Apollinaire southwest of Quebec City, on July 8, 2020, just before 9:30 p.m.

Police initially believed the crash was unintentional and they were investigating a case of someone leaving the scene of an accident. 

The disappearance triggered an intense 10-day manhunt that gripped the province and especially the town of just over 6,000 people where it played out.

It was not until 3 p.m. the day after the crash, July 9, that an Amber Alert was broadcast.

The girls’ bodies were found in the woods on July 11, but the coroner concluded the deaths likely occurred on the afternoon of July 9.

Martin Carpentier died by suicide in the hours after the girls’ killings, but his body was only found on July 20.

The coroner concluded that the father’s actions were triggered by a pending divorce from the children’s mother and he was fearful of losing access to them.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 13, 2023. 

The Canadian Press