Dear Ms. Grant:

The Honourable Gordon Campbell, Premier, has forwarded me your April 25, 2007 e-mail outlining the facts surrounding the disappearance of your daughter, Ms. Jessica Foster, and the steps you have taken to locate her.  I want to take this opportunity to express my concern for you and your family’s situation and my admiration with respect to your tenacity in following up with both private and public sector organizations in your search for your daughter.

As you are no doubt aware, the jurisdictional responsibility for the investigation involving your missing daughter remains with the North Las Vegas Police Department and perhaps other United States (US) Law Enforcement Agencies, depending on the nature of their investigation files.  You are also no doubt aware that Foreign Affairs Canada represents Canadians that travel out of the country and is the government body that supports these individuals should there be an issue.  Having acknowledged the role of both US law enforcement and Foreign Affairs Canada, I wanted to ensure that you have the support of these agencies.  I have asked my Ministry staff to contact the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and Foreign Affairs Canada to ascertain the status of their current investigation files and determine if the Province of British Columbia could provide assistance in locating your daughter.

The RCMP confirmed the Las Vegas Police Department has contacted them about your missing daughter and they have provided, and will continue to provide, assistance to the Las Vegas Police Department for any request that is made with respect to the missing person investigation.  Foreign Affairs Canada has also confirmed they have an open file and will continue to provide support for you and your family.

In order to ensure all is being done at the investigation level in the United States, I have taken the liberty of writing to the Consular Affairs Bureau in Ottawa and asked them to consider a face-to-face meeting/discussion with the North Las Vegas Police Department to ensure that law enforcement agency is treating the file with the respect it deserves and that they are actively involved in investigating your daughter’s disappearance.

I have also asked the RCMP to look at their National Policy on the Handling of Out of Country Missing Canadian Person Cases.  I wanted the RCMP to ensure they provide all the necessary support to other law enforcement agencies and to ensure everything is being done in this country to aid in that support.

I hope that my involvement will have a positive effect on the investigation and that you and your family are successful in locating Jessica.  I want to thank you for bringing this matter to my attention.

Yours truly,

John Les

Solicitor General

pc:     The Honourable Gordon Campbell