Parents urge missing daughter to call 911 if possible

The parents of a missing Toronto girl are as mystified as anyone else as to why their daughter went missing one week ago.

Vakhtang and Lela Makhniashvili told CTV News Channel on Monday that they didn't know why she would go missing and urged her to call 911 if possible.

They also asked anyone with information about the disappearance to call the police.

"She was happy," said Vakhtang, her father. "We didn't notice anything except her being most eager to experience everything in Canada."

He said he was sure she did not run away on her own free will as "it would be impossible according to her character."

"I don't expect she's somewhere of her own will," he added.

Mariam and her brother George emigrated from Georgia in June, where they had been living with their grandparents. Lela and Vakhtang had been in Los Angeles for five years.

On Sept. 14, the brother and sister went to school at nearby Forest Hills Collegiate. Mariam told George that she would be going in the front door because it was closer to her first-period class. That is the last known time anyone saw her.

Police spent Monday urging students of the midtown high school to think back to the day their 17-year-old classmate, who had a limited command of English, disappeared.

"There was a lot of activity outside the school," Staff Insp. Larry Sinclair said of the time period in which the teen is believed to have gone missing. "If you remember anything having to do with Mariam and her brother George, if you saw them, spoke to them, let us know. Nothing at this point is too trivial."

He also asked students to tell police about any conversations or encounters they may have had with the girl and her brother during the first week of school.

Sinclair assured the students they would not be in trouble for not coming forward with the information sooner.

Police showed students pictures of the girl in a slide show on a jumbo screen to help jog their memory.

Vakhtang, who was also at the school to speak to the students, said Mariam appeared to be in a good mood the day she went missing.

He described police, school and community support for his family as "unbelievable."

'No evidence of foul play'

Peggy Aitchison, principal at Forest Hill CI, told CTV's Canada AM on Monday that students and teachers did not notice anything amiss during the short week they spent with the girl.

"The students described her as a quiet but engaged student who responded in class," she said. "Nothing was reported to me that would indicate she was in a situation of despair or sadness but after four days, you don't really know someone."

Police have no evidence Makhniashvili met with foul play or an accident, Staff Stg. Dan Nealon, with 53 Division, told the crowd at the assembly.

He asked students to come forward if they have knowledge of any screen names or computer aliases the girl may have been using to communicate online.

"That would be helpful for us," he said.

Police also urged students to "talk, type or text" their information through Crime Stoppers using their anonymous tip lines via phone, email or text message.

A command post also remains at the family's apartment on Shallmar Boulevard, which is near Eglinton Avenue and Bathurst Street.

Lela urged her daughter to reach out, saying she won't be in trouble if she calls home.

"She knows our love for her is unconditional, no matter what," she said. "We'll receive her and we love her. She knows that."

Community support

Despite the girl's lack of ties at the school, the community is ready to help do what they can to bring her home, said Aitchison.

One student suggested holding a food drive for the family so that they can concentrate their efforts on the search. Aitchison said they would be collecting donations today.

Police say the case is currently classified as a Level 3 search, which is the highest level possible. However, authorities may decide to downgrade their search if they can't find any new clues to the girl's disappearance.

Vakhtang Makhniashvili said he's grateful for any bit of information about his daughter.

"We don't know what happened, we don't know if she went into the building or the (TTC) station or if someone spoke with her from a car," he told the assembly. "Any small detail will help. We thank you very much."

Counsellors have been brought into the school to help students deal with the stress of the police investigation.

Police released an updated description of the girl. She is white, 5'3" with light brown, shoulder-length hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing black jeans with front and back pockets and buttons as well as a baby blue, long-sleeved v-neck shirt. She was wearing a waist-length blue jean jacket and was carrying an oversized, used black backpack with a silver stripe that was hastily painted over in green.