Search for teen girl expands to Calgary and across country
The search for 13-yearold Lila Smith has been expanded outside of Edmonton and into Calgary, as well as other cities across Canada.
Smith was last seen around 8:30 a.m. on Friday near 131 Avenue and 91 Street. She was reported missing to Edmonton police by her family. She is described as being a Caucasian girl, five-foot-10 with a slim build, weighing around 100 pounds, with blue eyes and short brown hair. She was last seen wearing a hoodie with a white and blue body, one green arm and one purple arm, with a checkered pocket on the front. She was also wearing ripped blue jeans, black Converse shoes and carrying a backpack.
Earlier this week, Edmonton police asked for the public's help in their search for Smith and since then posters and photos of her have circulated rapidly online throughout the Edmonton community. Billboards have also featured her photos in hopes someone would recognize her.
Robyn Hanson, a family friend, said Thursday that they have received numerous tips and that they are all being investigated. She said Smith's family is continuing to hope for the best but given that it has been close to a week since her disappearance, they are expanding the search to other parts of the province and the country.
“This is not who Lila is, this is out of character for her,” said Hanson. “We're recognizing that we need to expand the reach and see if there are people who have seen her elsewhere in Alberta, in Canada, who can provide any sort of information to police.”
Hanson said Smith is a homebody and introverted and if she is not at home she is usually with her family. She said Smith is taller than most girls her age and asked Calgarians to be on the lookout for anything that seems out of the ordinary.
“Because she's so tall, it's easy to sort of dismiss her as being older than she is. She's 13 years old,” said Hanson.
There are approximately 30 billboards in the Edmonton region that will be displaying Smith's photo with further billboards going up across Canada, including at least one in Calgary.
Anyone with information regarding Smith's disappearance is asked to contact Edmonton police at 780-423-4567.
Calgary police confirmed Thursday they are assisting EPS with the investigation.