Another unconfirmed sighting of missing Toronto teen Mariam Makhniashvili has been reported in Alberta.

This one comes in the foothills town of Hinton, just east of Jasper National Park, and reportedly occurred on Nov. 30.

Hinton is about 330 kilometres slightly south and east of Grande Prairie, a city of about 50,000 where another uncorroborated sighting of Makhniashvili occurred on Dec. 2.

The first possible sighting of Makhniashvili occurred in the southern Alberta town of Okotoks, which is about 15 km south of Calgary's southern boundary.

In the Okotoks and Grande Prairie sightings, the person suspected to be Makhniashvili was selling crafts, specifically dreamcatchers.

The Okotoks sighting took place on Oct. Makhniashvili's 18th birthday.

The story so far

The teen when missing on Sept. 14, disappearing after walking to Forest Heights Collegiate Institute with her brother George.

The only tangible clue that police have found in Toronto has been the backpack she carried to school that day. It was located on Oct. 8 at 130 Eglinton Ave. E., which is a few kilometres east of the school.

Police have conducted an intensive search for the girl, who turned 18 on Oct. 27.
They recently concluded a canvass of 6,000 people in her neighbourhood and nearly another 1,000 at her school. Police said all those interviews generated no new leads.

Other extraordinary measures have included:

  • two aerial searches of parks and ravines
  • seizing computers from two local libraries she frequented
  • making appeals at three high schools

The only solid clue has been the discovery of the backpack Mariam had on the day she went missing. It was discovered Oct. 8 at 130 Eglinton Ave. E., which is a few kilometres away from her school. But police have no evidence to show Mariam put it there.

Toronto police say even at this stage, they can't yet say whether Mariam is the victim of foul play, whether she willingly ran away or whether something else happened.

Mariam's parents have maintained that running away would be very much out of character for her.

The girl and her brother came to Canada in late June from the Republic of Georgia to reunite with their parents, who had been working in the United States for the previous five years.

Mariam had a limited grasp of English. She left her passport at home.

Police say she hasn't left any type of trail in terms of communications or financial transactions. There's no indication she has tried to contact friends or relatives back in Georgia. She has no known connections to Alberta.

Mariam 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.

Anyone with information is asked to call Toronto police at 416-808-5300, or to call Crime Stoppers at 416-222-8477. Members of the public can also send in tips online at www.222tips.com, or they can text TOR and a message to CRIMES (274637).