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After five agonizing months of wondering where their daughter was and what
had happened to her, Raymond Zhang and Sherry Zu got the worst possible answer when a hiker found the remains of Dong-Yue
Cecilia Zhang on Saturday, March 27. It was three days before Cecilia's 10th birthday.
Cecilia's case received international
attention. Her parents appeared on America's Most Wanted and the search for the little girl eventually involved police in
China. It was widely speculated that Cecilia had been abducted for ransom though no demands were ever made. Raymond Zhang
and Sherry Xu mortgaged their home and friends of the family helped raise a $165,000 reward for her safe return.
The
City of Toronto was filled with images of Cecilia, including 4,000 photos pasted to taxicab windows, as well as flyers and
posters that remained prominent for the duration of the search for Cecilia.
March 28, 2004
Police confirm
the remains found the previous day are those of Cecilia Zhang. Police Chief Julian Fantino urges the killers to consider surrendering
early because the police "don't intend to give up." Homicide Inspector Rick DeFacendis asks for the public's patience in a
case that he said will be difficult to solve. Neighbours adorn the steps of Cecilia's home with flowers and candles in an
outpouring of grief and support for the family.
Neighbour Julie Chen places flowers outside the Zhang
home in Toronto, Monday, March 29, 2004. (CP PHOTO/Adrian Wyld)
March 27, 2004
A hiker in a ravine in Mississauga, near Toronto,
finds Cecilia Zhang's remains.
February 2004
4,000 taxicabs display Cecilia's photo in an attempt to gain
more information.
Jan. 21, 2004
Police rule out money as the motivating force in Cecilia's case and remove
the $165,000 reward for her safe return.
December 2003
Chinese police join in what has become a global search
for Cecilia.
Nov. 12, 2003
Police announce that Cecelia's parents are not suspects in the case and release
videos of Cecilia and copies of her schoolwork.
Nov. 1, 2003
Cecilia's parents appear on America's Most Wanted
to an estimated 10 million viewers. Investigators receive 13 new tips after the show airs.
Oct. 24, 2003
Cecilia's
parents appear publicly for the first time since her abduction, making a plea for her safe return.
Oct. 23, 2003
Police
make a strong statement, stressing that they think Cecilia is still alive, but don't believe her abduction was a random occurrence.
"There is nothing that convinces us that this is a random attack by a predator, nothing to this point in the investigation,"
said Toronto police Deputy Chief Mike Boyd at a media briefing.
Oct. 22, 2003
The media speculate that Cecilia
was taken because kidnappers hoped to extort a ransom from her parents.
Oct. 20, 2003
Cecilia's parents discover
their daughter is missing when they enter her bedroom to wake her for school. A window on the house appears to have been tampered
with. The morning Cecilia disappears her mother's cellphone rings twice, but nobody is on the line when Sherry Xu answers.
The calls were later traced to two different pay phones in the Brampton and Mississauga area.
1998
Cecilia
and her parents move to Toronto from Jiangsu province in China.
March 30, 1994
Dong-Yue Cecilia Zhang is
born to parents Raymond Zhang and Sherry Xu.
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