Halifax police spent the day searching for clues inside the apartment of a pregnant university student who has been missing for a week.
Loretta Saunders, a student at St. Mary鈥檚 University, was last seen last Thursday at her apartment in the Cowie Hill neighbourhood, and was last in contact with a friend on Friday via social media.
Police also spent Thursday gathering surveillance video from nearby businesses in an effort to find out what happened to the well-liked 26-year-old who her family says never fell out of contact.
Meanwhile, a couple charged with possessing stolen property after they were arrested in Ontario with Saunders鈥檚 car now faces additional charges of fraud. Victoria Henneberry, 28, and her boyfriend Blake Leggette, 25, now stand accused of using Saunders鈥檚 debit card on several occasions between the time she went missing and the time the car was found.
Police found her car in Harrow, Ont., south of Windsor, on Tuesday evening. Henneberry and Leggette were arrested shortly after.
Saunders鈥檚 boyfriend says the couple was subletting her apartment, and had not paid this month鈥檚 rent. He said Saunders was living with him at a different apartment in Halifax, and he last saw her when she left to collect the overdue rent.
Henneberry and Leggette are known to police in Halifax and in Calgary. They appeared in a Windsor courtroom Wednesday on outstanding warrants and to face the charges of possession of stolen goods and fraud.
They are to appear in court again on Friday, when Halifax police will ask that they be remanded for six days so the force鈥檚 investigators can travel to Ontario and bring them back to Nova Scotia.
Meanwhile, friends and strangers alike are banding together to raise money for Saunders鈥檚 family members who are travelling to Halifax from out of town.
Fellow St. Mary鈥檚 students sent a note to heads of the university asking that the institution help Saunders鈥檚 family.
鈥淭hroughout Loretta鈥檚 tenure at Saint Mary鈥檚 University, the community has been privileged by her鈥n the face of this unfolding and ongoing tragedy, we urge the University to provide financial support to the family of Loretta Saunders.鈥�
The university has agreed to help the family in whatever way it can.
Saunders鈥檚 friends have started collecting online donations, while the Native Friendship Centre in Halifax is organizing volunteers to assist the family, as well as a candlelight vigil for Saunders.
鈥淭here is a lot of work to do. If you could imagine just getting off a plane and coming to a strange city and saying 鈥榳here do I start? Where do I look?鈥欌�� Cheryl Maloney of the Nova Scotia Native Women鈥檚 Association told reporters.
鈥淲e are organizing volunteers. We are going to do what we can.鈥�
Saunders鈥檚 family has also started a Facebook page, 鈥淗elp Bring Loretta Saunders Home.鈥�
One of Saunders鈥檚 professors, Darryl Leroux, posted to the page that he had recently reviewed her thesis work on missing and murdered women.
鈥淟oretta is a uniquely brilliant student the likes of whom don鈥檛 come around often,鈥� Leroux wrote.
Saunders, originally from Newfoundland and Labrador, is described as a five-foot-seven Inuk woman. She weighs 120 pounds and has light brown hair. Her car is a blue 2000 Toyota Celica with the Newfoundland and Labrador licence plate HCP 543.
With a report from CTV Atlantic鈥檚 Kelland Sundahl
