3 boys found safe, mother charged with abduction after months-long pursuit

A Durham Region mother is in custody and facing child abduction charges after a months-long pursuit by authorities across multiple provinces.

Investigators began searching for 55-year-old Astrid Schiller and her three boys in December 2023, but were unable to locate them despite numerous attempts.

Police say the children were reported missing, but were not concerned for their safety and so an amber alert was never issued.

In the early hours of June 16, 2024, RCMP say they received a tip that Schiller was heading for the U.S. and she was later stopped at Boissevain Port of Entry in Manitoba.

Officers immediately took the children into custody and brought them to a residence in Forrest, Manitoba. Schiller was arrested at the scene, but was released hours later as the warrant she was arrested on did not extend into Manitoba.

The next day, police received another report that the children were no longer in care at the residence in Forrest and were missing again.

Schiller’s abandoned Mercedes was located about 700 Kilometers away at a campground near Pine Cree Regional Park in Saskatchewan the following week.

Authorities then issued a new Canada-wide warrant for her arrest.

Her whereabouts were unknown until last week when RCMP in Fort Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan received another tip that Schiller and her three children were in the area.

She was quickly located and placed under arrest. Police say her three boys ages 12, 11 and nine were placed in care and reunited with family in Ontario.

Meanwhile, Schiller was briefly transported to Manitoba and then to Ontario where she was re-arrested by Durham Regional Police on Thursday. She is facing three counts of child abduction and disobeying a lawful court order.

She is being held pending a bail hearing.