Investigators are searching a landfill for missing woman Shalini Singh, Hamilton police say.
Friends and family last spoke to Singh, 40, at 7:10 p.m. ET on Dec. 4. They reported her missing days later. The homicide unit was assigned to investigate after initial information raised concerns, police said.
On Tuesday morning, police announced the search at the Glanbrook landfill at 1500 Haldibrook Rd.
“Police are investigating the possibility that Singh was killed in her apartment and removed from the building through the building’s garbage disposal system,” said a news release.
Detectives traced the downtown Hamilton building’s garbage to the Kenora Waste Transfer Station, which police searched on Dec. 15, they said. Nothing was located there, as the garbage from the apartment building had already been moved to the Glanbrook landfill.
“Over the past few weeks, investigators have been planning and co-ordinating a systemic search of the landfill site,” police said.
They began the search there on Monday and will continue for several weeks. They advised of a large police presence, but said traffic won’t be impacted.
Singh was originally reported missing alongside her common-law boyfriend on Dec. 10. He was located on Dec. 11 after visiting a family member’s home outside Hamilton.
“He is not co-operating with the investigation and has provided no information that could assist in locating Shalini,” police said.
Investigators haven’t been able to find any evidence related to her disappearance in her apartment, despite searching it several times. They’ve obtained hundreds of hours of building security footage “to trace Singh and her boyfriend’s movements in the days surrounding her disappearance.”
But there is no footage showing Shalini leaving her building after Dec. 4, said police.
Friend calls Singh ‘an amazing person’
Singh is described by family and friends as intelligent, cheerful and kind — the type of person who is eager to help anyone who needs it.
She was working as a mental health crisis worker in the Halton region for the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), according to her LinkedIn profile. She is also a board director of Suicide Prevention Community Council of Hamilton, a non-profit advocacy group, volunteers in the community and does standup comedy.
At a vigil earlier this month in Singh’s honour, her friend, Amanda Bobbitt, described her as “quirky” with an “exceptional sense of humour.”
“She is all around an amazing person,” Bobbitt said. “You want to keep hoping [she’s safe] but as time goes past, it’s getting harder to do.”
Singh is described as five feet four inches tall and 120 pounds. She has brown eyes and shoulder-length black hair.
Anyone with information about Singh’s whereabouts is asked to contact police or Crime Stoppers.
If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911. If you’re affected by family or intimate partner violence, you can look for help through crisis lines and local support services.
