Central Alberta family of 6 missing, vehicle found abandoned in Calgary | Globalnews.ca

A mother and her five children have gone missing from their home in central Alberta and their whereabouts have not been confirmed in nearly a month, RCMP said.

The Mani family of six consists of 39-year-old mother Winnie and her five children: Liliane, 24; Debra, 18; Israel, 15; Samuel, 14; Gabriel, 13.

RCMP said they were last living in the Meridian Beach area of Ponoka County and going to school in Lacombe.

RCMP got involved after the Lacombe Police Service was contacted by the school, which said the kids stopped showing up for class.

“We did receive our initial call from one of the schools where all the children had been removed from,” said RCMP media relations officer Troy Savinkoff. “The circumstances of all that are very strange.”

Police said Winnie last spoke with family over the phone on April 3, though the whereabouts of her and her children hasn’t been confirmed since mid-March.

On March 28, the Calgary police told Rimbey RCMP a 2013 Black Dodge Durango, registered to Winnie Mani, was found in the city on March 24.

The vehicle was abandoned in a private parking lot in southeast Calgary near the Bow Habitat Station. Police said personal possessions were found inside it.

The family home near Gull Lake was also abandoned.

Savinkoff said while the investigation hasn’t revealed anything nefarious, the situation is odd.

“It’s not normal for a family to abandon their home, abandoned a vehicle — there were effects in that vehicle — and then just move on and not have any contact with the roots or a lot of people that they knew or spoke to where they used to reside.”

Savinkoff said of course, people can up and move on their own accord but it’s concerning when there are so many kids involved.

The situation does not warrant an Amber Alert, “but that doesn’t mean that there still is not a general concern, just based on the circumstances,” he said.

RCMP believe the Manis may be in southern British Columbia, possible on the Lower Mainland.

To call off the missing person report, Savinkoff said police would want to ensure in person everyone is ok.

“It would be more than just simply speaking to the mum, we would want to put our eyes on those children and make sure that that everybody is in safe condition,” Savinkoff said.

Winnie (39), the mother of the children is described as five feet three inches tall, 175 pounds, and having brown eyes and black hair.

Liliane (24) is described as four feet nine inches tall, 115 pounds, and having brown eyes and black hair.

Debra (18) is described as five feet two inches tall, 120 pounds, and having brown eyes and black hair.

Israel (15) is described as five feet six inches tall, 120 pounds, and having brown eyes and black hair.

Samuel (14) is described as four feet seven inches tall, 100 pounds, and having brown eyes and black hair.

Gabriel (13) is described as three feet nine inches tall, 78 pounds, and having brown eyes and black hair.

Anyone with information on the Mani family’s whereabouts can contact Rimbey RCMP at 403-843-2224.

Anonymous tips can be made to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or p3tips.com.

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