In the early hours of Sunday morning (4th August), the parents of a 15-year-old Irish girl named Nora Anne Quoirin were shocked to find her missing from her bed after the family had checked into a resort in Seremban on Saturday.
Police believe that the teenager could still be in the jungle near the resort, according to the New Straits Times. However, the police K9 Unit, which was deployed on the first day of search and rescue (SAR) operations, reportedly lost her scent about 100 metres away from the resort. Negri Sembilan police chief, Datuk Mohamad Mat Yusop was quoted as saying,
“The dogs’ abilities have their limitations. It will be difficult for the dogs to pick up the scent with each passing day, but we will not give up our search for the girl.”
Source: Daily Mail
SAR operations involving more than 170 people from the Fire and Rescue Department, Civil Defence, Rela, and the Forestry Department are still ongoing. The police stated at a press conference yesterday (6th August) that they are confident Nora was still in the jungle surrounding the resort, saying,
“That’s why our SAR operation today is still focusing on the same area, which spans 4.84 hectares in total. We will also focus our operation on the river area. We believe she could have been tired by now and would try to find a water source.”
Source: Malay Mail
In a report by the Daily Mail, Nora’s parents believe that the girl had “no reason to believe she wandered off and is lost” and insist that she was abducted.
While the police have said that there are no signs of foul play, the girl’s family insist that she may have been kidnapped.
In a statement that was put out on Tuesday (6th August), the family said,
“We are especially worried because Nora has learning and developmental disabilities, and is not like other 15-year-olds.”
“She looks younger, she is not capable of taking care of herself, and she won’t understand what is going on. She never goes anywhere by herself. We have no reason to believe she wandered off and is lost.”
Source: BBC News
Nora’s family also added that they would be treating the girl’s disappearance as a “criminal matter”.
Today (7th August) marks the fourth day of search and rescue efforts. A GoFundMe page to aid with investigations was also set up by Nora’s aunt, who stated that more family members are travelling to Malaysia to help with SAR efforts.
Stay tuned for more updates on this developing story.
Also read: Uncle Pleads With Malaysians for Help After 15yo London Girl Goes Missing from Seremban Hotel
