Search continues Tuesday for missing toddler Claire Bell

Montreal Gazette

17-06-2025

Quebec provincial police continued to comb areas west of Montreal early Tuesday for missing toddler Claire Bell who last seen Sunday in the LaSalle borough.
Sûreté du Québec Sgt. Jean-Raphaël Drolet confirmed the operation was underway in the Montérégie region, with a focus on Coteau-du-Lac, where the three-year-old from Montreal was reported missing.
Police are also looking in the Vaudreuil-Dorion area after a dead dog, believed to the Chihuahua seen with Claire, was found by police near Highway 30 Monday afternoon. The search could extend to surrounding areas, according to Drolet.
As the extensive search continues by police, Drolet said public volunteers are not requested as of Tuesday morning.
Claire was reported missing Sunday afternoon by her mother at a souvenir shop on St-Emmanuel Rd. in Coteau-du-Lac, about 60 kilometres southwest of Montreal. The woman told an employee she had lost the child and didn't know where she was, police said.
The mother was questioned by police and appeared remotely in court overnight Monday. She is expected to appear in court Tuesday in Valleyfield.
The woman posted a TikTok video hours before reporting Claire's disappearance. The Gazette has identified the mother as Rachel Todd, 34. She is seen in the short clip, posted on Sunday, holding the young girl.
More information about Claire
Claire is three feet tall, weighs 35 pounds, and has brown hair and brown eyes.
The toddler was last seen wearing a white long-sleeved shirt with a red collar and grey pants. She had no shoes on at the time.
Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to call 911. Anonymous tips can also be shared via the SQ's criminal information line at 1-800-659-4264.
No Amber Alert has been issued. Quebec's criteria require that police have reasonable grounds to believe a child has been abducted and is in imminent danger.
This story was originally published