Missing teen honoured at graduation
Quintin Bingley last seen at Pearce Avenue home in St. Catharines on May 25
Don Bingley’s voice trembled with emotion as he recalled the touching show of support for his missing grandson.
Although it has been more than a month since Quintin Bingley walked the halls of Governor Simcoe Secondary School, students and faculty there made it clear that their thoughts were with the 18-year-old who was to graduate with his classmates on Thursday.
In Quintin’s absence, his parents Sandra Kroeker and Greg Bingley walked up on stage to collect all the accolades the teenager earned during his years at the school — including an Ontario Scholar award for earning an average grade of at least 80 per cent.
And at the first mention of his grandson’s name, Don Bingley said the audience of hundreds bust into thunderous applause.
“They clapped as soon as the mother and father went up, and they continued,” he said. “The audience didn’t finish clapping until we left the auditorium.”
Bingley laughed as he recalled the experience.
“It’s what I was hoping they would do. God bless them,” he said in an interview Friday. “There was a bit of love there last night.”
Meanwhile, Bingley said the family fears they are no closer to finding Quintin – last seen at his Pearce Avenue home on May 25.
He said none of the leads investigated by police or a private investigator the family hired have brought the family any closer to finding the missing teenager.
Bingley said one lead was a report that someone matching Quintin’s description was seen in a store in Crystal Beach, before climbing into a passenger seat in a car and driving away. Bingley, a retired police officer, said he managed to locate the vehicle, but later determined that the passenger believed to be Quintin was not him.
Another potential lead was an image taken from a Welland Canal security camera near Quintin’s home a few weeks ago, but Bingley said the footage was too distant and grainy to even determine the gender of the figure in the picture.
In the meantime, community donations to help cover the cost of the family’s private efforts to find Quintin have climbed to $12,815 — since a Gofundme.com campaign was launched on June 10. Donations can be made at ca.gofundme.com/search-campaign-quintin-bingley.
Niagara Regional Police spokesperson Stephanie Sabourin said via e-mail that although investigators continue looking into Quintin’s disappearance, there is no new information to report related to the case.
“There has been considerable public interest in Quintin's disappearance and we encourage anyone who may have information to contact police,” Sabourin said.
Quintin is described as 5'7" and weighs about 140 pounds. He has short dirty blonde hair with a slim build, and an arrow tattoo on his right forearm.
Police ask anyone with information to contact them at 905-688-4111 ext. 4233, while his grandparents are asking people to call them as well at 905-8944945.