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Discovery of Child's Body Raises Questions

A P Kamath in Toronto

For four months the Anandavel family has been praying at temples and churches for their missing daughter Sharmini. The police, members of the Toronto Tamil community and Child Find Ontario had distributed over 5,000 flyers through the city and the Tamil community had held special prayers for the missing girl.

Now, they will be praying to know how this quiet, self-reliant 15-year-old girl came to die. Sharmini's body was found in a ravine yesterday, not too far from their home. Hikers, who found the skeleton and skull, immediately called the police.

"I don't understand how this could happen. How could anyone do this to my daughter?" Elooranayagam Anandavel, her father asked. "I would have given anything -- money, anything -- for my daughter.'' His wife Vasanthamalar has been continually sick since Sharmini's disappearance. The couple from Sri Lanka has one son.

Earlier, the police had questioned the family and friends if Sharmini had a boyfriend and might have eloped with him.

Though her father told the police that she was not allowed to have a boyfriend, he also told them that he knew she had no boyfriend.

"I told police over and over that she was not the type to run away and she did not have a boyfriend,'' her father said

As hundreds of fliers and posters were plastered across Toronto asking for information about Sharmini, the police also thoroughly interrogated a neighbor who had moved away to another part of the city two weeks before Sharmini disappeared.

When Sharmini didn't arrive home that Saturday afternoon as expected, her mother rushed down one floor to the neighbor's apartment but the 22-year-old, she found out, had moved out with his wife and young son. The man, who used to go swimming with Sharmini, has denied knowing anything about her disappearance.

He has also asserted that he never offered Sharmini a job, but he told the police that he provided her with an application for a swimming pool and health club as a favor. Since he often accompanied youths to the pool, he had heard there were summer job openings, he said.

Detective Sergeant Jim Crowley said that over a dozen officers are re-examining the details and researching for suspects and clues.

Authorities say they have not determined the cause of death.

According to the authorities Sharmini left her family's apartment on June 12 in a hurry, telling her family she was on her way to a new job. Her parents had intended to drive to the job, but were called away to help a sick family member.

Her mother said Sharmini had also told her she was going to return a pair of earrings she had bought for her ninth grade graduation ceremony. The earrings were not returned, according to the mother.

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