OPP release suspect photos in case of woman abducted in Wasaga Beach
Posted February 16, 2023 9:11 am.
Last Updated February 16, 2023 11:47 am.
Police have released new photos of suspects wanted in the abduction of a woman in Wasaga Beach more than a year ago.
The surveillance images made available by Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) depict two men and a woman believed to be involved in the kidnapping of 37-year-old Elnaz Hajtamiri.
Investigators say Hajtamiri was violently taken from a relative’s home in Wasaga Beach last January by three people dressed in police gear. Police believe the suspects showed up at the home to “arrest” the victim on the night of Jan. 12, 2022.
The homeowner answered the door and grew suspicious, but the three individuals overpowered them and subsequently abducted Hajtamiri. The three suspects fled the scene with the victim in a white 2016-2022 Lexus RX SUV.
The newly released photos were taken in Quebec, but police believe the three people pictured are GTA residents.
“The images we’ve released, we know that they are directly connected to the kidnapping,” says OPP Det. Insp. Martin Graham, adding that investigators are not able to confirm if the pictured suspects are any of the three individuals who physically abducted the victim.
“We are again seeking the public’s assistance in this troubling case. Somebody may be able to assist us and trigger their memories by seeing these individuals.”
The OPP also released photos (seen below) of one, or possibly two people, who rented a vehicle in December 2021. Police say this person, or persons, are not considered suspects in the kidnapping but may have information related to the investigation.
Last month, OPP and York Regional Police offered up a $100,000 reward to anyone with information that leads to the location of Hajtamiri. The update from police came exactly one year after her abduction.
She has not been seen since the kidnapping, but investigators have said they are hopeful the financial reward, along with the new photos, will bring forth information that could break the case.
“That reward is absolutely still available to anyone who can assist police in locating the whereabouts of Elnaz Hajtamiri,” Graham says. “My biggest fear is that she is no longer with us, my greatest hope is that she is alive.”
Hajtamiri is described as five feet four inches tall with a slim build, with shoulder-length brown hair, and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a dark knitted sweater, black tights/leggings with light coloured socks.
Police say Elnaz Hajtamiri, 37, was taken from a home in Wasaga Beach on Jan. 12, 2022. Photo courtesy: OPP.
The victim was staying with a relative in Wasaga Beach last January following an assault a month earlier. Investigators said she was attacked with a frying pan in the underground parking lot of her Richmond Hill condo, in the area of Yonge Street and Bantry Avenue.
Her sister said Hajtamiri was told by police to find a temporary safe place when alleged threats from her ex-boyfriend became more serious.
Charges have been laid in both cases against her ex-boyfriend, Mohamad Lilo. He was charged with attempted murder and attempted abduction in the assault, and charged with abduction following the January kidnapping.
Two other men were charged in the December 2021 assault. The suspect vehicle used in that incident, which hasn’t been recovered, was deemed stolen from Don Mills Road and Finch Avenue East in Toronto.
Anyone with further information is being asked to contact investigators.
With files from CityNews reporter Asher Roth
