A police car in Quebec (illustration). - Julien BESSET / AFP

Dozens of police officers raked this Sunday a wooded area of ​​Quebec in search of a man, suspected of having kidnapped his two little girls found dead the day before. The drama aroused great emotion in the French Canadian province.

The two girls, Norah, 11, and her sister Romy, 6, were last seen Wednesday evening with their father Martin Carpentier. Their bodies were found Saturday in a wood and an autopsy will be held to determine the exact cause of their death.

Martin Carpentier remains untraceable, despite the imposing police deployment https://t.co/qhvGCjiRnQ

- ICI Québec (@iciquebec) July 13, 2020

Helicopter, drone and dog handler

The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) then concentrated its efforts in a manhunt to find their father, 44 years old. But he remained untraceable Sunday evening, despite the importance of the means implemented.

Several dozen police officers participated in the hunt with all-terrain vehicles, a helicopter, a drone and a dog handler. According to the police, Martin Carpentier was a scout leader and could have knowledge of forest survival.

Martin Carpentier, 44, from Lévis, is # wanted in connection with the two inanimate young girls found earlier in the Saint-Apollinaire sector. https://t.co/jISDbh9m3m

- Sûreté du Québec (@sureteduquebec) July 11, 2020

His car found damaged and unoccupied

The news of the two girls' deaths had been greeted with dismay in Quebec. The Premier of Quebec, François Legault, said he was "upset" about a "national tragedy". "As a parent, this tragedy is incomprehensible," tweeted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saying "having a broken heart" for the family of two children.

1/4 Like all Quebecers, I am overwhelmed, without words. Losing two children, the most expensive thing in life, is incomprehensible. It is a national tragedy.

- François Legault (@francoislegault) July 11, 2020

The provincial police launched an alert on Wednesday and undertook searches in an area south of Quebec City, after the disappearance of the two girls with their father.

The parents of the two children were separated. Martin Carpentier's vehicle was found accidentally in the evening of Wednesday, in circumstances which remain mysterious. The vehicle rolled over several times and the police arrived on the scene and found no one on board or in the vicinity.

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Drancy: The two children kidnapped by their father found safe and sound

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